


Danganronpa Another Interlude: Ultra Hope Boys

by Im_Miss_Understood



Series: DRAI: UHB [1]
Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, Dangan Ronpa Another Episode: Ultra Despair Girls
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Background Fukawa Toko, Background Naegi Komaru, Because Nagito, Dialogue Heavy, Every one is having a bad day except for Nagito he’s enjoying it, Fighting Despair with so much hope, Hajime is Toko, Hinata Hajime and Kamukura Izuru Share a Body Simultaneously, Hope vs. Despair, Kamukura Izuru Has Feelings, Kamukura Izuru Is Bad At Feelings, Kamukura is Syo, Kidnapping, Komeada Nagito Isn’t The Warriors Of Hope’s Servant, M/M, Makoto can talk to ghosts (psst Chiaki psst), Monaca doesn’t want Komaru to be the Ultimate Despair, PTSD because Makoto references him almost dying multiple times, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Takes place during UDG, The RoD and The WoH are both in Towa, The Tragedy of Hope's Peak Academy, The remnants wanna kill Makoto, This is just UDG but Makoto, and Izuru is emotionally stunted but he is trying his best, and Kamukura can feel through Hajime but he ignores it, it’s like a day after THH, they are not very compatible
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-09
Updated: 2021-01-04
Packaged: 2021-03-09 19:21:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 27,435
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27971516
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Im_Miss_Understood/pseuds/Im_Miss_Understood
Summary: After the Killing School Life, Byakuya, Makoto and Toko manage to get separated from the other survivors and get trapped in Towa city.This is no accident however. The Remnants of Despair want Makoto for....something, and they’re going to have fun with it.Nagito needs to see if the Makoto Naegi is truly the incarnation of Hope, or if he’s nothing more then a disgusting fake. He’ll need to test him, even if it means putting him through Ultimate Despair first to bring him the purest of Hope.Kamukura knows what’s going to happen. It’s boring. He is going to get the most interesting outcome. Hajime’s simply along for the ride. He doesn’t have a choice.Makoto just wants to find his friends, escape, and maybe help some upperclassmen along the way, and make a new best friend, or maybe two while he’s at it.(Komaru is lost in the city with a pickle child threatening her)(Pickle child is also still manipulating Toko)Nobody is having a good time, expect for Monaca, and maybe Nagito.Canon only until the first game
Relationships: Class 78 & Naegi Makoto, Hinata Hajime & Kamukura Izuru, Hinata Hajime & Naegi Makoto, Hinata Hajime/Kamukura Izuru/Naegi Makoto, Hinata Hajime/Naegi Makoto, Kamukura Izuru & Naegi Makoto, Kamukura Izuru/Naegi Makoto
Series: DRAI: UHB [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2090490
Comments: 52
Kudos: 174





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Oop I’m starting a multi-chap fic here we go boys
> 
> I hope too say you can expect weekly uploads, but we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it

* * *

Makoto slowly pulled his hood over his head, pulling the zipper up in an attempt to disappear entirely.

It had all happened so quickly. The reveal of the Mastermind, his failed execution, Junko’s own death. Makoto could hardly believe it had happened at all. It almost felt like a bad dream.

But no, the dull pain that was spread throughout his entire body was proof enough. This wasn’t just some bad dream. The Tragedy, the killing game, his friends deaths. All of it had happened.

Byakuya, as calm and proper and as uncaring as ever, let out a sniff, uncrossing his legs.

“Are you alright?” He asked, twisting his head to look at him, looking down at him from his nose. Even when attempting to comfort someone else, Byakuya still treated others like trash on his shoe, not worth his time, although Makoto liked to think that he had started to care more about all of them. He simply needed to learn how to show it.

He reached a tentative hand out towards Makoto, fingers twitching slightly as they made contact with his thigh.

“It’s going to be alright” he said awkwardly, and while Makoto could see and appreciate the attempt, Byakuya simply wasn’t the type for comfort, used to the bitterness that came from the business world.

It was at times like this that he wished Hina was here. Out of everyone of the survivors, she and him were probably the only ones who could comfort at all, compared to cold chill the others produced. 

After leaving the school for the final time, Makoto and the other survivors had spent approximately a day out in the barren wasteland. They hadn’t truly figured out what they were going to do once they got out, assuming they would separate.

However it seemed like not one of them wanted to brave the cold outside world alone, so they stayed together. Bonding, you could say.

If you called bonding Yasuhiro complaining about how hungry he was, or how tired he was, or how bored he was...

They ended up taking shelter in an abandoned warehouse a few whiles way from Hopes Peak.

They managed to find some canned soup, and some dusty bottles of water. Better then anything, but Byakuya refused to eat or drink any of it, so neither did Toko.

However, once they were all tucked away into the cold of the barren tile, they were woken up to multiple attacks on the barracked door. 

Togami was the one who took the lead, blocking the others in the room, with Toko swooning in the back about how great her master was, before sneezing and switching with The Genocider.

The men who entered were professional looking, decked out in suits, and ties, and 

Guns

Oh god they had guns

They were kill them 

I don’t want to die 

I just escaped

They claimed that they came from Future Foundation, an organization tasked with releasing the world from the despair that Enoshima had created, and that they wanted them.

More specifically, they wanted him.

They seemed to give no second glance towards the other survivors, pushing Togami out of the way, much to the chagrin of Syo, and then pulling Makoto up from where he had been in the middle of getting up, and beginning to pull him away from the rest of his friends, to the chagrin of Kyoko.

“Hold on” Kyoko held a gloved hand to her mouth, her poker face barely managing to stay cold, thick and pulsing anger simmering underneath it. “Where are you taking him? We’re not going to allow you to take him without us”.

“We’re not?!” Yasuhiro screeched.

And that was how they got here. Stuck with two cars that were only big enough for three people, Byakuya, Toko, and Makoto himself took one, while Kyoko, Yasuhiro, and Aoi were taken in another.

“So” Makoto said, breaking the awkward silence that had begun to fester in the tight car. “What’s your name?”

More silence

“My names Makoto! Although you probably already know that because of the broadcast an everything haha..haaa”

He trailed off at the one-sided conversation. The Future Foundation members seemed content with the silence, as did his two other classmates.

Letting out a soft sigh, Makoto mumbled a small ‘okay’ and slowly sunk back into his hoodie. Closing his eyes, he let the lull of the cars hum completely overtake him. 

Then a few hours later, they pulled to stop, swerving.

Makoto let out a gasp as his head bonked against the back of the seat, his hoodie falling off. Toko screeched as she fell back into her seat. Togami stayed perfectly still, as poised as ever.

“What the hell...?” One of the drivers murmured. He and the other member got out of the car, but not before giving them a strict warning to stay put.

“W-what’s g-going on?” Toko squeaked, caustically looking up from above her seat, making it so that only her eyes were visible.

“Tch, do you truly think either of us know anymore then you?” Togami sneered at the girl, causing her to let out another gasp and fall, letting her disappear from sight.

Before Makoto could get up to see if she was okay, Togami began speaking again. 

He wore the same smile he always wore in class trials, cold and cunning.

“However, that is what we are going to find out”

“Umm” Makoto rubber his index finger to his cheek, looking at the taller blond. “How are we going to do that?”

“By looking around, obviously” Makoto ignored the obvious duh that seemed to silently laugh and mock him.

“I don’t know if that’s a good idea...” Trailing off again, Makoto looked around at the empty car.

‘Curse Toko’  Makoto silently thought to himself, getting out of the now spacious car. Seeing Toko and Togami in the distance, he took off after them.

“Hey you guys! Don’t forget about me!”

And then stopped short.

The exit they had been driving towards had been completely destroyed, rubble covering it all so tightly that it looked practically air sealed.

Byakuya stared at the rubble with a condescending look, as though it had personally offended him. 

“H-how d-did this h-happen...?” Toko whispered, glaring at the blocked passageway as she bit her fingernail.

“A storm? Maybe a strong wind?” Makoto offered.

“No. This was no natural occurrence. Someone is trying to keep us in”

Byakuya glowered harshly.

“Or keep everyone else out”

* * *

“We appear to be in Towa city” Byakuya said, looking at the destroyed city around them.

“How do you know that?” Makoto asked, cocking his head. Byakuya let out another tch. 

“The Togami family is well aquatinted with the Towa’s. I believed that would be obvious, but I guess I overestimated your brain‘s ability”

“Well you don’t have to be so mean about it. I was just asking...” Makoto looked down at his feet, shuffling them.

“Well don’t be so stupid, then I won’t have to tell the truth.”

Letting out a sigh, Makoto turned away, looking towards the rows of buildings.

Looking around the city, at the smell of death and blood and murder, it hit closer then at Hopes Peak. This was real, and seeing it all destroyed hit him hard. It hurt. Everything hurt now-a-days.

Deciding that the best course of action would be looking for the Future Foundation members who had brought them here, and not wanting to go back to the stuffy car, they set out into the city.

Makoto was starting to regret it now though. While Byakuya, Toko, and Syo were all his friends, they were no where near good company, especially in a destroyed city. 

Stopping short, Makoto pivoted to his left, looking up at a semi-destroyed building, before a brightly lit smile covered his entire face.

“I recognize this place, it was in the picture Enoshima gave me! This was where my family was” He whipped around to Togami and Syo, who had taken over for Toko, and lunged into both of their arms. Ignoring the shrieks and grumbles, he looked up at both of them.

“We have to go in! We have to!” 

“Absolutely not.” Byakuya pushed down his idea instantly. “We have to find the Future Foundation lackeys, and we have to leave this place as soon as possible”

“B-but, but-”

“No” Togami said sharply

“Please? I just want to see if my parents are there! Maybe they’re okay!” Makoto begged.

“...” Togami looked like he wanted to fight him on it some more, but in the end he simply pushed him away, waving his hand towards him as though he was a fly bussing around his head.

“Very well. The pig trash and I shall make our way through the other side of the building, to see if those utterly irresponsible field workers are around. I will make sure to complain to the Future Foundation about how lazy their workers are once we get there.”

Beckoning towards Syo, he turned and walked towards the other side of the building, the serial killer skipping after him like a lovesick puppy.

“Don’t die Big Mac~” Syo waved her scissors at him, before prancing after Byakuya, disappearing around the building.

Makoto let out a sigh of relief at the silence. Not for the first time he wished Kyoko was here. Her level headedness would be really comforting in this situation.

Bracing himself for what might be in the apartment he cautiously opened the door, and entered the building.

The first thing he noticed was that the apartment was completely destroyed, the same as the picture Enoshima had given. His parents were no where to be found.

Makoto didn’t know wether to be sad that his parents weren’t there, or glad that their bodies weren’t there either.

Pacing around the area, he slowly made his way through the different rooms. Everything was so nostalgic, it was starting to make him tear up.

Oh wait. That was the blood.

He entered the kitchen, and looked around. Nothing of importance in here.

Turning to leave, he was suddenly stopped by a whoosh of air at his back. Whipping around, he slowing surveyed the room, before his eyes set their sights on something that had not been in there a few seconds ago.

A...megaphone? It was set on the dining room table. Makoto cautiously took a step towards it, picking it up. 

Holding it up to his eyes, Makoto looked through it and gazed his eyes around the kitchen.

It gave him a front row seat as a gigantic Monokuma burst through the door.

Letting out shriek, Makoto stumbled, backing himself into the table. Wincing, he looked back at the Monokuma who was slowly making it’s way toward him.

“Oh no no no no no no no” Makoto murmured to himself, slowly turning and getting to the opposite side of the table. The Monokuma followed him, and they began a game of cat and mouse.

After a few seconds, the Monokuma lunged on top of the table, causing Makoto to let out a full fledged scream, tripping over his feet and dropping the megaphone, watching it slide under the table.

Immediately, Makoto lunged for it, diving under the table and picking it up. Scrambling, he scurried out from under the table and burst through the broken doorway.

Heart pounding, he raced through the destroyed house, the Monokuma’s loud footsteps thumping behind him.

‘ ~~Like the conveyor. The conveyor. You’re going to die’~~

Trying to shake that thought away, Makoto lunged through the the living room and pulled open the door, leaping into the hallway.

Rushing down the carpeted hallway, he heard the front door break apart behind him, and the Monokuma’s pounding steps continued to thump behind him.

Clutching the megaphone in hand, Makoto finally reached a break in the hallway.

Tearing himself towards the elevator, Makoto moved to push the button andopen it frantically, only for the doors to suddenly burst open.

“Makoto, move!” Byakuya screamed, true horror on his usually icy face, a megaphone in his hand.

Not needing to be told twice, Makoto immediately stumbled out of the way, watching in awe as the megaphone Byakuya was holding seemed to summon some sort of telekinetic energy.

As the Monokuma rounded the corner, Byakuya released the energy from the megaphone (gun?) and it struck the Monokuma head on, crumbling to the ground.

It fell to ground, and after a few seconds, Makoto suddenly remembered to breath, and he released a gasp as he clutched at his heart.

“You idiot!” Glancing up, Makoto watched as Byakuya stalked towards him. The fear in his eyes was gone, replaced with simmering anger.

“I should’ve never let you go alone. How did you manage to attract the attention of a Monokuma? How did you even do that?!”

Makoto looked down at his lap, not knowing how to answer.

“Sorry” he whispered pitifully, and Byakuya scoffed.

“Well as long as you’re alright, then I guess there was no harm done. However, if you are in danger again, don’t expect me to come help you”

Makoto smiled, jumping up and hugging to cold man. “Thanks Byakuya”

“Tch. Be quiet. It was nothing” he looked away, tugging at his tie.

“This is too perfect” Byakuya said darkly, gazing around the room. “We were absolutely trapped here on purpose, and a Monokuma being sent into a building a that been abandoned for months now? No, somebody saw you come in here, and sent the Monokuma after you”

“B-but, who would do that?” Makoto asked, gazing up at the taller. “What’s the point of sending a Monokuma after me?”

Byakuya stares down at him in disgust. “You cannot be that stupid can you?” He rubbed at the bridge of his nose, sighing. “How you managed to survive this long I have no idea. Naegi you are the Ultimate Hope. While it may have simply been a throwaway title Kirigiri gave you it is still how the world sees you. Peasants attach themselves to a pillar in desperate times when they are scared, and since you killed Enoshima, you have become that pillar.”

“Ehh?! Pillar..?” Makoto said, more or less talking to himself.

“Yes Naegi” Byakuya responded anyway. “A pillar”

“I found the lackeys. The were on the other side of the building. When we saw a Monokuma enter the building I immediately assumed the worst and lead them here. It seems I was right”

Makoto blushed at that, embarrassed but still smiling happily at him.

“Was this perhaps a trap?” One of the future foundation members asked, glancing at his partner. “We were given specific instructions from Chiza Yukizome to head through this city, but with the blacked exits and the Monokuma, I can’t help but feel as though we were lured here”

“Wow, Monokuma’s just the same as ever, huh?” Makoto chuckled mirthlessly. “Just like when we first met him, right Byakuya?”

At Togami glare, Makoto was silenced.

Suddenly one of the Future Foundation members who had been in the elevator walked towards him, tugging the megaphone out of his hand.

“Hey!” Makoto reached out to pull the megaphone gun back, but the man in the suit held it up above his head.

“Where did you get this from?” The man questioned, his voice bland.

“Um, I found it?” Makoto realized how bad that sounded a few moments after he said it, and judging by the unamused look the Future Foundation member gave him, he thought so too.

“I swear! I was in that random apartment, when suddenly this giant whoosh of air came, and then the megaphone was on the table, so I-“

The member cut him off with a hand in his face. He looked over the megaphone in hand, flicking little switches on it and holding it out like a gun.

“It’s an almost exact replica off our future foundation model, with a few differences, like the colour. It’s black, instead of red”

“Hacking guns use program codes with electro magnetic waves. We’ve only managed to develop one type of wave at the moment, the break wave, but...”

He held the megaphone (hacking gun?) up to his mouth and positioned it towards the wall. 

“Break” he said in a monotone voice. 

Nothing happened, and Makoto shuffled his feet awkwardly.

“Tch, as expected. It’s a dud”

The man threw the gun back at him, and Makoto squeaked as it hit his head and bounced off of it, landing on the floor.

“We should head back now. We have to get the Ultimate Hope out of the city”

“Exactly” Togami confirmed. “Now is no time to talk. We need to find Fukawa and get out of this damn disgusting city”

“Ugh!”

Spinning, Togami and Makoto whipped around, gazing at the Future Foundation member who had fallen to the floor.

Another Monokuma stood above him, claws out, mechanical laughter echoing throughout the halls.

Immediately, the remaining Future Foundation members blocked the survivors, keeping the two behind them as more Monokuma entered through the hallway door, and the vents, surrounding them.

“T-there’s no end to them!” Makoto gasped, stumbling back into Togami. “What do we do?!”

“ You , have no option other then run”

Togami turned and picked up the Hacking Gun that had been dropped on the ground previously.

Tossing it to him, Togami began to power 

up his own, aiming it at the on slot of Monokuma.

“I was only given one gun, and I doubt you of all people will be any use with it compared to me. The best thing you can do right now is run, and maybe bash some Monokuma’s heads in. These things are the only weapons that seem to have any effect on these...”

He narrowed his eyes for a second, searching for the correct term 

“...Monokumai” he settled on. “Even you should have been able to figure that out from the test shot however”

“If the waves from these guns are the only things that can fight against these things, t-then what do I do?” Makoto whimpered, gazing at the Monokuma still attacking.

“You can’t do anything. I said that already. There’s a restaurant across the street. Fukawa should be there already. Once I finish taking care of these annoying bears I will meet you both there.”

“Absolutely not!” Makoto immediately denied, shaking his head forcefully. “I refuse to run away and leave you behind to fight alone.”

“Are you an idiot? Or perhaps an imbecile. Must I repeat myself? You. Cannot. Do. Anything. You must get out of the city and reunite with the other survivors”

Byakuya’s face softened a little. “I will be fine Makoto. I hope you are not underestimating me.”

Before Makoto could respond, a Monokuma who was previously clawing at a Future Foundation member lunged at them. Byakuya wasted no time, shooting at the Monokuma and blowing it up.

“H-how are you so calm?! After everything that happened, so soon after the killing game...How are you still so poised”

Byakuya sighed. “As a prodigy, I have to adapt to a vast amounts of situations.” He said simply, as though it was the most obvious answer in the world.

“Hurry up and go. Without defence you’re just in the way”

And with that, Byakuya lept into the fray of Monokuma, leaving Makoto standing by the elevator.

After a few moments of simply standing there, Makoto nodded to no one in particular, rushing into the open elevator and watching Byakuya shoot and blow up a few more Monokuma.

‘Let’s do this’ Makoto thought to himself, rubbing the sweat off his face.

The doors closed, and the last thing he saw was Byakuya destroying the Monokukuna, with it crumbling to the floor.

Bursting out the front door, Makoto panted, rubbing sweat off his face again. 

Looking up, he spotted the restaurant Togami was talking about. 

‘There it is!’ Makoto thought confidently, starting to make his way over. 

Only for the block he was on to blow up. 

Gasping, Makoto backed away from the horde of Monokuma who were destroying buildings, cars and the street.

Turning, Makoto stumbled his way into the restaurant, closing the door and holding it shut with his back. 

Slowly, he pushed himself away from the door and walked farther into the restaurant. 

“Hello! Table for 1?” The woman in front of the main desk asked, looking up at him with a smile.

“T-t-the bears!” Makoto shrieked, gazing up at the woman in fear.

“Bears?” She looked confused. Did she not know what was going on right outside the building?

“The Monokuma! They’re everywhere! You have to evacuate. Get out of the city and-“

“Sir please, You’re disturbing the other costumers. Please, calm down” the woman placated. 

“You have to do something!” Makoto urged, begging.

“Alright, alright”

Pulling out her phone, she turned away. 

“Yes, hello? Security? Yes, some suspious random boy came-“

Suddenly, a Monokuma lunged through the window, knocking the woman out cold. As more began to file in, Makoto ducked, trying to avoid the glass and the Monokuma’s claws, and blacklist out the screams.

Watching a dead body be flung in his direction, Makoto crawled back, clutching the useless gun in his hand, staring at the woman’s dead blank eyes.

“Oh my god” like a deer in headlights, Makoto was unable to move, simply staring at the unmoving body. 

( ~~Just like your friends~ dead and unmoving)~~

Silencing that thought from his head, Makoto gazed down at the gun.

‘What did that guy do again? Shout break?’

Holding it up to his mouth, Makoto

aimed it at a Monokuma.

‘I have to find Toko’ Makoto thought to himself, crawling out from where he was kneeling by the desk.

‘Then we have to get Byakuya and get out of here! We have to find our other friends!’

Makoto held the hacking gun up to his mouth

“Break!” Makoto screamed into the megaphone.

Almost immediately, a gigantic force burst out of the gun, hitting and enveloping the Monokuma completely. 

It fell to the floor, and Makoto gazed at its crumpled body in shock, before looking at the gun in his hands, a wild smile enveloping his face.

“Wow, I thought this gun didn’t work, but it’s amazing!” Makoto cheered. 

“The worker said that the Future Foundation only had one bullet developed but...”

Trailing off, Makoto looked through all the guns modes.

“T-there’s has to be at least ten of them! But that doesn’t make any sense. Why is it working for me now, yet it didn’t work before?”

‘I’ll think about that later’ Makoto decided, gripping the hacking gun and making his way through the now empty restaurant. 

‘I have to find Toko!’

Trying to avoid the dead bodies, Makoto took aim at another Monokuma, and shot it again. 

“This gun really is incredible. It’s taking out Monokuma’s in one shot”

Continuing to walk through the restaurant, Makoto suddenly stopped.

“Heh...hehe”

‘What...is that?’ Makoto thought to himself, circling himself and looking for the source of the noise.

“Hehe...Hehehe”

“Who’s there? I know you’re here somewhere” Makoto clenched the first that he wasn’t using to hold the gun, bringing it up to his chest.

“I’m not scared of you! I have hope!”

Turning a corner, Makoto came face to face with a T.V. 

A dead man was on the screen, lying on a desk. The giggling grew louder and louder.

Suddenly, it stopped, and three children entered the set. A girl with long pink hair, a boy with orangish-red hair, and a...boy? Makoto couldn’t really tell. He was wearing some sort of equipment that covered his entire face. Only his grey eyes were visible.

“Rawr rawr! I’m a zombie” The red one lifted the reporters dead head up, playing with his limbs and dancing around. The pink one just stood there, watching.

“I’m gonna eatcha!”

“Oh no!” The pink one swooned. “Please don’t eat me~”

“Hey Masaru, do zombies really rawr like that?” The grey eyed boy droned, talking to the red head who Makoto assumes was ‘Masaru’.

“I’m really having trouble getting past that” he admitted. 

Masaru hummed, thinking. “Ehh, who cares?! Style is the only thing important for this kinda thing ya know!”

They began running around the set, the pink one saying some very uncomfortable things.

“Oh no no no! Child porn is a no-no”

Backing away, Makoto but a hand on his mouth, unable to look away from the screen.

“Hey! What are you doing?!” Another child entered the set. He had blue hair, and was glaring at the others. 

“Didn’t I tell you this broadcast was important? This is the Warriors of Hopes big moment! Our introduction.”

“Jeez” Masaru said, rolling his eyes. “What are you so mad about? Oh I know, you want to play Zombie too, right Nagisa?”

“H-huh? Wait, don’t come over here!” They began to run around the table, before collapsing into a fit of giggles.

“W-what are those kids doing...?” Makoto said to himself, backing away and hitting the wall behind him. “Why are they playing with that mans dead body?!”

Suddenly, as the others got back up, another child entered the set. She had green hair, green eyes, and green everything really.

Another eye catching feature about her was that she was in a wheelchair.

“Hello citizens of Towa city! I am Monaca, and we are the Warriors of Hope! And we are the masters of Mr. Monokuma!”

‘Warriors of Hope? But, but that means they’re on my side. On hope’s side!’ Makoto thought to himself, staring up fearfully at the screen.

“But then, why did they do that to that poor reporter? Why are they using the Monokuma to destroy the city?” Makoto said out loud, not even realizing. 

“This town” The girl said softly, voice fading out. “This dirty, plain, worthless, pathetic, good-for-nothing town that’s nothing more then a breeding ground for filthy criminals. It is here that we have decided to build our paradise. A paradise of children” 

She threw her hand in the air, her facial expression staying the same. “My children! Therefore, all you rotten adults are no longer needed!”

She waved, her expression twisting into something dark 

“Byeeeeeee”

The broadcast suddenly cut of, and Makoto slowly slid down the wall.

“What’s going on? Why is this happening to me? Haven’t I been through enough...?”

* * *

_ A few months ago, I was to start my first day at Hopes peak academy. Instead, I was plunged into a sadistic killing game _

_The person who destroyed the world and_ _plunged it into despair was my very own classmate, and dare I say friend, Junko Enoshima, along with her twin sister, Mukuro Ikusaba._

_While I was in the killing game, I was under the belief that the world outside was fine, and that me and my classm_ ates _were the only ones feeling this despair._

_ I was wrong. _

_ The outside world’s despair was far greater then the despair inside the school.  _

_ But me and my remaining friends had Hope, and we weren’t going to allow the despair to deter us. _

_ Junko was right. Everything, everywhere, everyone was despair. Crime, hate, murder, brutality. It was everywhere. It was all normal. _

_ Violence, revenge, more violence, more crime, more hate, more despair, no hope. _

_From what Junko told us, a global war broke out. Not for land, or arguments, just...war for the sake of war. For_ _despair_.

_ It tainted the world completely in despair. _

_But even through all of this. Even learning about all of this in such a short amount of time, just mere hours after I had escaped my own personal despaired hell, I still had hope for the world. I believed that I could save it. That I could bring everyone Hope again._

_ And now this. I’m stuck in the same city my family was trapped in. I’m still a prisoner, but now I just have a bigger cell. _

_ And what awaited me after that horrible despair of my killing school life, was an even worse despair.  _

_ Ultra despair. Or maybe, Ultra Hope? _

* * *

Sitting by a pillar in the restaurant, Makoto put his head on his knees, trying to catch his breath. 

“I-I need to find Toko, I need too!”

Suddenly, a Monokuma jumped up outside, peering through a window lookin into the restaurant. When it didn’t see anyone however, it left.

Taking a deep breath, Makoto slowly worked his way back up, glancing at the window before continuing. 

He stepped past multiple bodies, avoiding them and saying goodbye. Sure, he didn’t know them, but he hoped that wherever they were now they were ok.

Stopping at a back door, Makoto found a man in a suit and glasses, tinted black.

“Y-your from Future Foundation, aren’t you?!” 

The man let a grunt in pain.

“Are you okay?” Makoto immediately questioned, getting on his knees to get closer to the injured man.

“Y-you’re Makoto Naegi, right? You need to get out of here, and quickly!”

“W-what?” Makoto asked, peering at the man. “I can’t just leave you! Not when you’re hurt”

The man shook his head. “No, you’re far too important. My life pales in comparison to yours. You need to go, before they come back”

Makoto felt himself mentally preparing for a speech. 

“My life is no more important then yours. We’re both people right? Nobody should be placed higher then another simply because they have something or have done something to warrant that respect. Everyone deserves to be saved, no matter how small or insignificant they may seem!”

The man stared at him in wonder. “I’ve heard the broadcasts, but I never knew how passionate you truly sounded.”

However, he shook his head. “I’m going to have to disagree with you. You need to leave. That’s final”

“Go to the park. H-head through this door and go straight down this -ugh- road”

“There should be a...Future Foundation helicopter there, stationed to pick you, Togami, and Fukawa up and take you t-to the Foundation”

“Hurry, go now!”

“But what about you?!” Makoto demanded “What’s going to happen to you?”

CRASH

Glass broke from the opposite side of the restaurant, gaining the attention of both the Future Foundation member and the Ultimate Hope.

Multiple Monokuma jumped through the now open window, and Makoto let out a shriek, stumbling.

Turning his head, the man pushed open the door he was sitting beside, and gestured towards it.

“Go!”

“But-“

“No buts, go now!”

“I-I” Makoto turned and looked at the Monokuma steadily approaching. 

He turned to the man, determination brimming on his face. 

“I will not leave you. I will not leave anyone else. I will not let anyone else die for me!”

Hooking the mans arm over his shoulder, Makoto began pulling him through the door.

“But-“ the man started

“No buts! Go, now”

He looked like he was going to fight him on this some more, when the mechanical laughter of the Monokuma blared, and the man nodded. They began limp running through the hallway.

Walking through the street suddenly became a lot harder with someone limping on you, but Makoto could mange. 

“T-thank you, so much-“ he started 

“Hey, we’re not out of the fire yet” Makoto grinned at him. “Thank me when we get to the helicopter.”

“Your kindness truly knows no bounds, Ultimate Hope”

“Uh, you can just call me Makoto” He rubbed his index finger on his cheek. “No need for that Ultimate Hope business”

Limping through the road, they finally reached the park, Makoto turning and entering it.

“H-hey, wait! Don’t leave yet”

Going as fast as one could with someone putting all their weight on you, Makoto waved his free hand at the people near the helicopter.

“W-we need help!” Makoto panted, leaning down. That had taken more energy then he had been expecting.

Immediately, two members extracted Makoto and the guy from each other, pulling the two apart.

“Sir, we have orders to get you out of the city at this very moment to take you too Future Foundation”

“But, but my friends!” Makoto gasped, watching some other members begin to heal the hurt member. “I can’t leave without them!”

“Your life is more important. Togami has a hacking gun and Fukawa can transform into the murderer. You, on the other hand, are defenceless. We will come back for them, but you are to come with us”

“Where did you last see Byakuya Togami?” A woman member asked him.

“In the building back there. He told me to run, that he would take care of the Monokuma and meet me at the restaurant-“

“I see” one pondered. “I haven’t been able to reach him, so I simply assumed he was in danger”

“But” another countered “this is Byakuya Togami. He was able to understand the Hacking guns mechanics seconds after picking it up. I’m sure he’s fine”

“And Toko Fukawa?” The woman asked 

“I haven’t seen her since I went into the building” Makoto admitted sadly, looking down at his feet. 

“That’s fine” the woman brushed off. “We’ll find her. She also has The Genocider with her, so she should be fine”

“I’m still confused” Makoto admitted. “Who even are you guys? What happened in the year where my memories were wiped? I-I want answers” he raised two balled fists to his chest, determination brimming within him.

“I’ll give you the short version.” The man in front of him stated.

“The person behind all of this is also behind your loss of memories, and your imprisonment. Junko Enoshima, although you probably already know that”

“The Biggest, Most Awful, Most Tragic Event In History  was all her ”

“It was more then just an incident, it shook the foundations of society to the very core. It wasn’t just one either. Various incidents broke out all over the world. Then there’s the war... The Biggest, Most Awful, Most Tragic Event In History  includes that too”

“Because of all this the world crumbled, but, in all that chaos of Enoshima’s despairful ashes...”

“Your hopeful Phoenix rose up!”

“M-my hopeful Phoenix?” Makoto questioned, rubbing his hand to his cheek in his confusion.

“Yes. When you survived your execution, and killed Enoshima, you gave the entire world something to hope for”

“Future Foundation has been trying their best for the past year to bring hope back into this world. That is why we need you Makoto Naegi. You are a symbol, and with you, we can convince the people that there is still hope”

“So you’re on my side?” Makoto asked, looking up at the man. 

“Yes Naegi, we are on your side”

“O-oh. Okay! It’s just...”

He trailed off, looking away.

“Is something wrong?” The woman asked

“No, no. It’s just hard to believe.” Makoto chuckled mirthlessly. “I’ve never been important to anything, and now suddenly I’m this big symbol of hope?”

“It know it’s difficult” the woman comforted. “But you needed to know”

“This island is controlled by a massive IT corporation. It is referred to as Towa city” the man continued.

“Ever since the government stopped functioning, Towa group with their advanced technology have been running the show here”

“Towa group played a huge role in healing the world” Another member added “after the Tragedy, some areas of the world had become so uninhabitable due to pollution, but the Towa Group created an air purifier that runs all over the city. They truly are incredible”

“The city was vastly unaffected by the Tragedy, which is why we were keeping a close eye on it. However, these riots that suddenly occurred are things we could’ve never anticipated”

“Riots...?” Makoto whispered. “Why is this happening?”

“We honestly have no clue” the one on the left admitted. “However we have reason to believe it’s because you managed to escape from the school of Despair” he ended.

“Are you saying this is all...my fault?” Makoto said softly, fear forming on his face”

“That is not what we are trying to imply at all, Mr. Naegi” The woman stomped on the mans foot, causing him to let out a gasp of pain.

“Oh right, can you tell me about my family? I recognized a building here that was the same as a picture Junko showed me. I was hoping they were here but...”

“Hold that thought” The man on the right said, holding up a hand. 

“Am I the only one hearing that?” The woman in the middle asked, glancing around.

“No no, I hear it too” Makoto admitted. “Is that...singing?”

“Over there!” The man pointed behind him.

Makoto turned to look.

A child in what looked to be a Monokuma mask was sitting on a statue of a sandcastle. Slowing, more and more Monokuma began to emerge from behind the structure.

Suddenly, another Future Foundation member tugged at his shoulders, pushing him.

“Get back” He growled. Quick as ice, one of the Monokuma lept off the sandcastle and ran at them on all fours. Makoto started towards the future member, only to jump back with a screech of his own as a Monokuma lunged at him, clawing and biting at the mans face.

Before Makoto could do anything, another member tugged at his arm and started pulling him towards the helicopter.

“Wait, but the he-“ Makoto started 

“Your life is more important. This way!” She cut him off immediately.

The woman shoved him inside the helicopter, and attempted to climb in herself, only for a Monokuma to come out of nowhere and lunge at her, pushing her to the ground.

Makoto lurched away from the door and stared up fearfully at the Monokuma claw that was pulling itself up into the helicopter.

Blood. It was covered in blood.

Pressing himself against the helicopter’s wall, he watched as the Monokuma walked past him, going into the the pilots compartment.

Confusion welled up inside of him.

‘Why isn’t it attacking me?’ Makoto thought to himself as he looked at the Monokuma from the corner of his eye.

His eyes widened as the Monokuma suddenly started the plane.

“No, no don’t do that! Please, stop!”

His pleas fell on deaf ears however, as the helicopter slowly began lifting into the air, and taking off, flying away from the city.

“Wait! Wait-“

The Monokuma began shoving at the controls, pulling at them. The wheel was ripped out of it’s socket, but the robot seemed to care little about it, as it began laughing.

Then suddenly they were going down down down, falling falling falling...

‘Down the trash chute’

They hit the ground, and Makoto winced at the pulsing pain all around his body. Slowly, after a few long moments, he pushed open the door that he was leaning against and tumbled out.

Crawling, he shook himself and began moving away from the plane, slowly as to not injure himself more.

When he was a few meters away, the copter blew up. Makoto felt the heat hit his back, and he curled up into a ball.

Collapsed on the ground, Makoto lay on the hard road, trying to move. He was so, so tired.

Why was he so tired?

Monokuma began surrounding him. Thousands and thousands of Monokuma began surrounding him. 

Looking up at them, Makoto didn’t have the energy to do anything to fight against them, watching the edges of his vision go black, before everything faded away.

* * *

“...”

“Hey...”

“Can you hear me...?”

“...”

“Are you okay?”

“...”

“My...beloved Hope”


	2. The Remnants Of Despair

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lol don't expect most updates to come out this fast I just proofread this one and decided ’yea, let's post it!’

Slowly blinking his eyes open, Makoto looked at the pillow he was sleeping on.

Wasn’t he just in the middle of a street?

Glancing up, Makoto attempted to look around the room.

Only for him to be met with a face-full of white fluffy hair and big grey eyes.

“Ehhh?!” Makoto lept up, banging his head against the wall. Groaning, he rubbed his hand against the back of his head, looking warily at the man who stood by his bedside.

“Oh, I’m so sorry!” The man apologized, putting his hands out in a placating manner. “I didn’t mean to frighten you” 

His voice was like a rickety old voice box that hadn’t been used in years, with a mesmerizing sort of quality. A slightly out-of-breath soft-outspokenness that sent an uncomfortable prickle through him. His voice just seemed, wrong.

“Oh, I’m being too much. I shouldn’t even be in your presence, but I’m oh so selfish that I had to see you!”

The boy started towards him, and Makoto couldn’t help but flinch.

“Oh, I apologize! I haven’t even told you my name! Trash like me doesn’t even deserve that courtesy, but you may call me Nagito Komeada, or anything else you wish. You can call me anything you see fit. I am the Ultimate Lucky Student.” gazing at him with an emotion Makoto couldn’t place.

Naegi smiled back at him. “Uh, Nice to meet you, Komeada-kun.”

Wait

“Did you say Ultimate Lucky student?!” At Komeada’s nod, Makoto continued. “So, we’re the same? That’s so cool! I didn’t even know that was possible.”

“...” Komeada pursed his lips at that, and his eyes darkened. Makoto was confused. Why wasn’t he excited at well? Having the same talent was so cool.

“I’ve been watching you for a long time now, all throughout the broadcast! You were simply so incredible during the class trials! So hopeful!” Komeada closed his eyes as he sighed happily to himself, completely ignoring Makoto’s previous statement. Makoto wanted to ask about it but decided to keep his mouth shut. For now.

‘ **Sharing a Talent With Komeada’ has been added to your mental notebook.**

As Komeada continued to ramble, Makoto got up, throwing his legs across the bed so that he was sitting up instead.

“U-um” Makoto interrupted, stopping the other in his tracks. As the taller man gazed down eagerly at him, Makoto felt himself growing uncomfortable. Komeada’s gaze felt like ants crawling and prickling on his skin. “Komeada-kun, do you know where I am?”

“Oh!” He seemed far too happy for someone living at the end of the world. “You’re in my room! You’ve been asleep for a week”

“A-a week?!” Makoto gasped, and he knew his sudden panic was there on his face for all to see, and he would have felt embarrassed about it but he came to another realization first. “I-I need to find my friends! Do you know where they are?”

“You can worry about that later” Komeada dismissed flippantly, still staring at him with a large smile. 

That didn’t make him feel batter at all! He had left Toko at the restaurant, and she and Kyoko and the others were probably worrying about him.

Turning to look back at him, Makoto looked at the man with sadness “So you don’t know?” 

Shaking his head, Komeada stared at him. “I’m sorry Naegi-kun, I have no clue. 

Brushing off the fact that Komeada knew his name without Makoto ever telling him, he nodded. 

“It’s alright Komeada-Kun, it’s not your fault” 

“Wait,” Makoto said as he realized something. “if I’ve been sleeping in your bed, where’ve you been sleeping for the past last week?”

“Oh. I’ve been sleeping outside” Komeada brushed off simply. 

Makoto let out a choke. 

“Huh?! Why would you do that?” Makoto asked confusion written blatantly on the younger boy's face. 

Komeada gave him a confused stare, as though he was the one talking crazy. “Well because you were sleeping in my bed of course. It’s fine though, as you deserve my bed far more than me.” 

“That’s not true!” Makoto immediately denied. “I don’t deserve a bed any more than you! We’re both equal”

Komeada simply kept smiling, although it tightened slightly.

“Please don’t compare yourself to someone as disgusting as me Naegi-kun, it’s simply gross for you to think that someone like me deserves to be on the same level as you.”

The emptiness in his voice came out of nowhere. The passive-aggressiveness that stemmed deep from those simple words were far too sharp, and his  eyes . They were too wide, too...

Red? 

Swirling

They were swirling just like Junko’s had when she had...

Makoto gulped, The creeping anxiety he seemed to have developed was whispering in the back of his mind again, or perhaps it was his tiny amount of survival instincts. It didn’t matter though, all that matters was that it was telling him to  run. Get out. Escape, ESCAPE-

“But, but-“ Makoto began to argue.

“I truly am lucky” the taller boy admitted, cutting the younger off and walking even closer to him, somehow smiling even wider. “After all the bad luck I got from the riots, - they  blamed me for days, after all, I was the one who decided we should come to Towa-, it was all worth it in the end. I finally found the Ultimate Hope himself. All the suffering in the world was worth it just for this single moment” he wrapped his arms around his body in a hug, swaying slightly.

“But we shouldn’t talk about someone as useless and worthless as me...they’re waiting.”

“Wh-who’s waiting...? What’s going to happen to me?” Makoto asked, fear beginning to crawl up his body again, overtaking every other thought in his mind. He was trapped in a room and Makoto was suddenly aware that Komeada was between him and the door.

Komeada stared at him for a second, a curious stare. Like Makoto was an enigma he couldn’t figure out.

“K-komeada-kun? Are you alright?”

“Hmmm?” Komeada hummed. “I apologize Naegi-kun. It’s just, that response was so, how do I say this?”

He waved his hand up in the air for a second, thinking. It became so bad that the glove he was wearing almost came flying off.

“Normal. Yes, that’s a good word. It was so ordinary it shocked me. I truly shouldn’t judge, especially the Ultimate Hope, I have no right, but it just wasn’t what I was expecting you know? ”

He gazed at him again, eyes closed this time. It simply caused his smile to seem more eccentric.

“I know this seems sudden, but you’re are going to have to go through a little test first before I can answer any other questions. I apologize, but the Remnants decided that would be the best course of action. However, I am sure that with your hope you will always succeed!”

Remnants? ’re those the people who were waiting for him? 

** ‘ The Remnants’ have been added to your mental notebook **

Komeada’s smile shrunk slightly.

Reaching a hand into his pocket, Nagito pulled out a black megaphone.

“My hacking gun!” Reaching out his hands, Makoto made a lunge for his weapon, only for the taller boy to quickly pull it out of his reach.

“Ah, ah, ahh.” He tutted a finger, shaking his head. “Wait a second my hope. I’ve modified your gun slightly, and I apologize for taking it from you without your permission. It was simply too powerful, although that makes sense since it was made by  _him_.”

My hope? 

_ Him?  _

The way Komeada hissed out that word as though it was something foul and gross that he didn’t even want in his mouth made Makoto want to crawl away and hide. A few seconds later though he was back to his eccentric smiling self.

Makoto couldn’t tell which one he preferred. 

“I have no clue how you managed to get a hold of the  **_Ultimate Weapon,_** but I won’t ask questions. I’m prying enough as it is”

“It truly is an incredible machine. Such a spin on a normal boring idea the Future Foundation had, how incredible”

He said it dazedly, as though he wasn’t thinking about the words before saying them.

Holding out the gun, Komeada handed it to Makoto.

“Now the test isn’t going to be anything you can’t handle I’m sure, you have hope after all. You simply have to make it to where everyone is waiting, and you pass”.

Turning away, Komeada began to make his way to the door, turning his head only slightly as he spoke.

“And I would suggest keeping that gun of yours a secret, Naegi-kun. I assure you, good things won’t happen if you tell  them about it”

And with those ominous parting words, Komeada left the room, the door closing shut with a clank behind him.

Makoto didn’t know what to think. If what Komeada was saying was true, then the man had saved him from the Monokuma after he had passed out, and had allowed him to sleep in his bed, for a whole week at that! 

Although he could be lying about that. Makoto would have no idea, and he couldn’t see any way to tell the passage of time.

And how had Komeada found him, and how had he brought him here? While Komeada had been slightly intimidating, he hadn’t looked physically strong whatsoever. 

Looks could be deceiving, however. Makoto knew that from firsthand experience.

The last thing he remembered was collapsing in the middle of the street with a bunch of Monokuma. He also had no clue who Komeada was, and as far as Makoto could remember, they had never met.

Maybe they had known each other in their school years? Or perhaps he was in cahoots with Byakuya? Maybe the man had sent Nagito to find him and take care of him.

But he was assuming things now. These people could be a random cult or something, who wanted to sacrifice him to despair! Or they just wanted to kill him. If they weren’t sent by Byakuya or the Future Foundation, what did they want with him? Where were his friends? Why was he the only one here? 

Makoto tried to piece together what had happened between the span of one week, or if he could recognize Komeada, but nothing came up. There’s was a blank space where his memory had been, and he didn’t know how to get it back.

He was stuck in a building with a stranger who may or may not be evil and despaired and he had taken him from his friends, and he had no idea why. 

Speaking of despair, Why did Komaeda have despair swirls in his eyes? There was a perfectly simple answer to that but...

Makoto didn’t want to believe it but...

Komaeda may have been an associate of Enoshima.

But how? He had sounded so genuine when talking about hope! Albeit a little creepy, but still genuine.

Makoto stared at the door Komaeda had left for a long while, debating on what to do. Glancing down at the hacking gun, he scrolled through the different modes and was shocked to see only two available.

‘Is this what Komaeda meant when he said he modified it? He practically took away every feature!’

“I can’t complain about that now.” Makoto decided, getting off the bed and walking towards the door, scrolling through the remaining bullets as he did.

‘Break and Move’ Makoto pondered, looking at the door, then back at the gun.

“What would Kyoko do?” Makoto thought out loud.

If Kyoko were here, she would have already opened the door, gotten out, and managed to figure out everything as to why these people had kidnapped him. If Byakuya was here he would probably sneer and demand to be let out, and he too would also find a way out somehow, but Makoto knew he couldn’t act like Togami. If he wanted to get out, he’d have to think like Kyoko. He had to think about this. Hoping alone couldn’t get him out of this situation, no matter what Komeada said.

The break bullet was used only for Monokuma as Byakuya said, so the only other option was the moving bullet!

...

That was easy

Pumping his hand into the air mentally, Makoto aimed the gun at the door and shot, only for nothing to happen. The door stayed wedged in place.

Sulking, Makoto glared at the door. Putting the gun on the ground, he tried pulling on the door. Nothing. It wouldn’t budge. 

When he once again gained no results from pulling and pushing he kicked it, only to let out a gasp of pain.

Clutching his foot, he hissed out a ‘frick!’

3 minutes later and Makoto was still glaring at the door. Picking up the gun, Makoto threw it across the room.

When he threw it, his finger brushed across the trigger. Shooting out, it hit the button beside the door. 

Watching it open, Makoto rubbed his pointer finger to his cheek, chuckling in embarrassment.

Picking up the gun, he walked out of the door, only to find himself stuck in several hallways.

“T-they all look the same” Makoto gasped, turning in a circle and looking at all the identical hallways.

Grumbling, Makoto pouted “This is going to take forever”

“I guess I’m just going to have to try a random one and keep picking till I get to wherever Komaeda-kun wanted me to go”

Makoto ended up going down at least six different hallways and encountering four Monokuma. Along with taking away most of his gun's features, Komaeda had taken away most of the effect from the break bullet as well. By complete luck he had managed to learn that the red-eye was the weak point for every Monokuma, taking them out in a single shot.

Soon enough Makoto found himself at the top of a set of stairs, at the only door that wasn’t locked.

Taking a deep breath, Makoto stuffed the gun into his hoodie and entered the room.

The first thing he noticed was that there were a lot of people. A quick count answered that there were 12 people in the room.

“Hey! He’s finally here!” A girl with multicoloured hair and horns who was hanging from the ceiling screamed, pointing at him.

“Tch took him long enough.” A tall woman with an orange kimono said as she rolled her eyes.

“Aren’t men supposed to be good at this kind of thing?” A woman with bright red hair glared at him, and Makoto felt himself cowering away.

“Oi! What the hell took ya so long?! We’ve been waiting forever” A short boy in the back growled, stalking towards him. Once he was close enough, Makoto realized that he was taller than the blond boy in the suit.

He wore an eyepatch.

“Kuzuryu-kun, please calm down” Suddenly Komaeda, who Makoto had noticed was standing in the back, walked up towards them, hands back up in a placating position.

“Fuck you! You don’t tell me what the fuck to do!” The boy named Kuzuryu yelled, whipping around to face Nagito and

He pulled out a gun.

Backing away, Makoto stared at the confrontation. Everyone was quiet, staring in silence as they absorbed the situation.

Surprisingly, Komaeda seemed perfectly calm, not fazed at all by the gun suddenly in his face. It made Makoto believe this was a normal occurrence.

“While I have no right to demand this of you, it would be in your best interest to put the gun away. We wouldn’t want an accident to occur”

The dark way Komaeda’s voice creaked when he said that seemed to unnerve Kuzuryu enough for him to put the gun away. Stuffing his hands into his pockets he turned away, muttering curses.

Wincing, Makoto turned to look at Komaeda, who sent him a smile. 

Smiling back, although it came out more like a grimace, Makoto turned to look at the rest of the people in the room. They had begun to crowd him, staring at him like he was a meal. One girl was drooling.

They all had one thing in common though. Their eyes. Their despairful red swirling eyes, all directed at him.

There was no doubt about it. These were all Enoshima’s people.

“Damn. He’s kinda tiny huh?” The tall woman sneered, raising an eyebrow and looking down at him.

“And skinny too! He’s practically a twig” the drooling one said, pounding her fist.

“I could definitely fatten him up!” A portly man in a chefs hat exclaimed, pulling a comb out of his pocket and brushing it swiftly through his croissant looking locks.

“Hey, kid! What your name?” A man in the back bellowed. He was tall, maybe even taller than Sakura. His voice seemed to echo to every corner of the room.

“I-I’m uh....um....uhh” Makoto stammered, unable to get the words he needed out. The way they were staring at him made him feel like food.

“Oh shut up old man! We all know the kid's name” the athletic-looking woman rolled her eyes.

The man chuckled good heartily. “Just being polite Akane”

Ahh, so the drooling women’s name was Akane.

“Tch. Be polite someplace else” the kimono wearing woman scoffed.

“We might know him, but Lil Junko doesn’t know us yet, huh?” The multi-coloured woman yelled down, still on the ceiling.

_ ‘L -Lil Junko...?’ _

“Oh, right” the night red-head stated blankly. “Guess I’ll go first”

“I’m Mahiru Koizumi” she looked him up and down, appearing incredibly unimpressed.

_ ‘I know I don’t look like much, but I feel like you’re judging me way too quickly!’ _

“ The Ultimate Photographer,” Nagito said, startling Makoto. He’d crept up behind him without making any noise.

_ ‘Wasn’t he just in the back?’ _

**_ Komeada’s ability to sneak around unnoticed has been added to your mental notebook _ **

_** Komeada’s ability to sneak around unnoticed has been shortened to Komeada’s Ninja skills ** _

“She’s won several awards for her pictures, and she’s a master at making everything look better than in real life. With her talent, she can even make trash like me look incredible!”

Before Makoto could question Komeada about the trash comment, the girl who was on the ceiling suddenly jumped down, causing Makoto to stumble away into Komeada. He immediately wanted to get away from the taller man.

“Ooh! My turn! My turn!” The girl sang out, bouncing up and down.

“I’ ‘Buki’ ‘Mio’, ‘Da’! What does that spell? Ibuki Mioda!” She cheered. 

Her upbeat energy was a nice change to the dark tension that seemed to be everywhere else, and Makoto felt himself smiling along. 

”Ibuki’s the Ultimate Musician,” Nagito said, gesturing to her. “She was part of a super popular all-girl band, but she split from the group because of creative differences. She’s gained even more popularity since then, and her singing talent is so incredible. Her singing has inspired her audience with so much hope!”

At that Ibuki paused, as did everyone else in the room. It was like everything living had been sucked straight out of it, like a void of nothing but despair.

“...Hope? Ibuki doesn’t make music for hope. It’s all for despair!” Ibuki shouted, beginning to jump and down again. Her eyes began to swirl.

“YEAH!!!” The gigantic man screamed, causing Makoto to shy away.

“...anyways,” the tall kimono girl said. “I’m Hiyoko Sanoji. Ultimate traditional dancer”

Nagito was silent. Makoto turned around to see what was wrong, only to see him having a heated discussion with Ibuki.Makoto could make out the words hope and despair and something about concerts. He had a feeling that Komeada wasn’t going to be contributing to any more of the conversation.

“Hey trash” Sanoji suddenly blurted out. “How the fuck did you manage to throw off that blond dick who was with Junko 2.0? You never told us”

Huh?

“Byakuya? You know where he is?!” Suddenly, Makoto was grasping at the older woman’s shoulders. He couldn’t reach, however, so he simply settled for clawing at her upper arms.

“Tch. Yea of course I do.” She pushed him away, and Makoto couldn’t bother to be offended.“He was with you when Komeada found you. He made some grand speech about how he was gonna take you back to the Future Foundatrash or something so Nagito ordered some Monokuma to capture him”

...

What

**_ What? _ **

“Ah, I apologize Naegi-kun. I wasn’t being completely honest with you. Please understand that it was for your good. If you knew about it the moment you woke up then there was no way you would trust any of us.”

_ What, what is he talking about? _

_ What is he saying? _

“I can see you want me to explain. What an honour!” Komaeda walked away from Ibuki and towards him, and Makoto didn’t even try to hide the way he curled into himself. Anything to get away from his, his  _kidnapper’s_ grip.

“I suspected you probably wouldn’t cooperate when I tried to bring you here, so I had no choice but to take matters into my own hands! I was originally going to let Togami-san leave without a scratch, as he’s an Ultimate who doesn’t deserve to be injured let alone killed by something as disgusting as me, but he ordered The Genocider to sniff you out. Her nose truly is incredible, but I couldn’t let them follow us.”  


“When I first realized you were in the city, I ordered the Monokuma to capture you and bring you here on the helicopter, but it accidentally broke and you crashed. I apologize for that.”

“Komeada-kun, what do you mean?” Makoto asked, gazing at the man in front of him because he was so confused because Komeada had told him that he hadn’t known where his friends were.

“When I heard that you had passed out in the middle of Towa I went to go collect you. However, when I got there you were already gone! Turns out Togami-san had found you first! I don’t doubt that you would have been in far better care with him than with me but, when he told me he was going to take you to the Future Foundation well, it just wouldn’t do.”   


Komaeda clenched his fist and brought it up in front of him. “You’re the Ultimate Hope! I couldn’t just leave you there to rot in the disgustingness of that place.”

“You . . .”

“Don’t worry Naegi-kun! I’m making sure Togami-san has the best stay possible. I’ll make sure he isn’t killed or injured. That would make you, well it would make you despair, and he’s an Ultimate so he should never be hurt like that.”

_ Komeada... _

_ Komeada hadn’t saved him _

_ Makoto had been with Byakuya, and Toko, and then Nagito had come and _

_ He had kidnapped Makoto, captured Byakuya and put him who knows where, and he had no clue where Toko was. _

_...I...understand  _

** Komeada’s kidnapping reveal has been added to your mental notebook **

_ Komeada and all these people ( ~~accomplices~~ ) had kidnapped him, and taken him from his friends. Komeada hasn’t rescued him like he had thought. He had done the exact opposite. He had been the one to prevent his rescue.  _

_ These people, these  Remnants _

_ The swirls, the despair, the key sign of Enoshima’s presence... _

_ These people were  Enoshima’s remnants, the Remnants Of... **Despair**. _

Makoto dove for the exit. 

Immediately Komeada was there, pulling at his hoodie and knocking him down. When he tried to get up Komeada placed a hand on his head, pressing his cheek up against the floor.

“Naegi-kun, I’m going to have to ask you to calm down,” Komeada said sternly, as though he were a parent disciplining a child, and not a kidnapper holding his victim down and preventing his escape.

Makoto couldn’t hear or pretended not to hear, and he continued to thrash in the man's grip. He was no longer thinking logically. All he knew was that he was in the presence of Junko’s people and that he needed to  _** get away- **_

Komeada let out a disappointed sigh, shaking his head. Suddenly, the gothic hand that wasn’t being used to press his head down wrenched at his arm. Holding it up in the air, Komeada took what looked to be a bracelet and attached it to his wrist. With a mechanical whirring, it latched on tight, digging into his wrist.

It had a Monokuma eye symbol on it, and it flashed a bright red.

“You want me to explain correct?” Nagito questioned, smiling down at him. Any scant comfort that Makoto may have once had was immediately destroyed, scattered like ashes in the wind.

“This bracelet is a customized machine created by Monaca, the chief executive of Towa Group's Robotics Branch. It was originally created to, well, put their bearers to sleep,  permanently  if they tried to escape ”

_ Permanently...? Is he talking about...killing? _

** Execution? **

_ No. No, not again. Not AGAIN- _

“However that won’t happen to you, Naegi-kun. Rather it will incapacitate you for a brief amount of time, knocking you out with a controlled shock. It also allows us to track your location, just in case you try and escape.”

“It will also knock you out if you try to remove it, so don’t even think about it” Koizumi tutted, shaking a finger at him.

** The Bracelet has been added to your mental notebook **

“Perfect. It appears that we are ready.” Komeada said, a wide smile appearing on his lips. 

“R-ready?! Ready for what?” Makoto almost didn’t want to ask, and at the hungry way the Remnants (Of Despair) looked at him, he immediately wished he hadn’t.

“You see tiny Junko, you haven’t felt despair yet,” Ibuki admitted, bouncing on one leg to the other as she put two fingers to her head, appearing to be in deep thought. “Well you have but it hasn’t broken your gross hope yet!”

“Yea! So we kinda have to do this to crush your hope, and make you the perfect L’il Ultimate Despair.” Akane rubbed a finger in her ear, looking away to the side in a way that showed disinterest.

Komeada was quiet at that, but he just kept smiling.

Had he ever truly stopped?

“Soooo, we’re gonna throw you it into Towa, watch your hope crumble, and then mould you into despair” Hiyoko quickly drawled out, as though she was talking about the weather.

“W-wait, what are you talking about?” Makoto questioned, still in Komeada’s grasp.

“We’re gonna set you out into the city and you're gonna hope for a bit until you give up and despair. Once you do we’ll come to collect you and turn you into the second Ultimate Despair. Got it? Cool” Fuyukiko snapped, glaring at him in annoyance. “God I feel like I’ve said this a hundred times already...”

** Break his hope? **

** Despair? **

_ ’But, but I don’t want to despair! I want to hope, and be with my friends!’ _

“You-you can’t! I won’t survive a day out there! I-I’ll die and then how can I be Ultimate Despair if I’m dead?”

“Oh, how modest Naegi-kun!” Komeada exclaimed, slowing getting off of him. He slowly backed up so that he was the only thing between Makoto and the door.

_ Could he push Komeada away and make a run for it? _

“But you’ve already shown us everything we need to know from the broadcast. With your hope, there’s no way you can fail!”

“That's only because I was lucky...” Makoto whispered, mostly to himself.

“Oh no no no Naegi-kun” Komeada appeared to have heard him anyway “what you did in the killing game was no feat of luck! That was hope!”

“Oh, shuddup will ya?” Fuyuhiko rolled his eyes. 

“Well then? Let us begin-“

“W-wait!” As everyone’s eyes turned to him, it took Makoto a moment to realize that it was he who had yelled.

“What now?” Hiyoko groaned in annoyance. “I wanna get to despair already!”

“Why are you doing this? What’s the reason?” Makoto questioned, gazing at the people in front of him.

A few moments of silence passed before...

“A...ah...ahahaha...”

At the sudden laughter, Makoto glanced at the side of the giant room, looking at the women responsible for the sound. She had purple hair and was wearing what seemed to be multiple bandaids on her legs and arms.

“Hah...AHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAAAAHAHA”

Stumbling back, Makoto stared warily at the woman, who was now clutching her stomach and heaving in deep breaths.

“R-reason?” She heaved. “Oh my baby”

And suddenly she was wrapping her arms around him and Makoto had never felt so uncomfortable in his life.

“Oh, my baby. My sweet, innocent, baby beloved” she whispered, running her hands over his back and in his hair. 

“We don’t have any reason, my L’il Beloved. We’re doing this to help you”

“B-but this isn’t going to help me!” Makoto cried out, although it came out more like a muffled screech since his head was pressed up against the woman’s stomach. 

“Of course it will! We have to mould you into the perfect Enoshima, and this is the only way.” The woman gazed at him in a motherly way, happiness soaking up her entire expression.

Suddenly she unwrapped her arms from his body and stepped back.

“Fall into despair, please? For  Mommy”

“ Kazuichi, START IT UP!” The giant man screamed, and another guy with bright pink hair and a yellow jumpsuit immediately jumped up.

“Hell yeah!” The who’s name seemed to be Kazuichi punched a few buttons on a remote he had.

...

And then the purple-haired woman pushed Makoto into a chair.

_ Where had that come from? _

** Bang **

...

_ No... _

_ No, not again _

_ Stop. Stop stop stop stop  ** stopstopstopmakeitstop- ** _

** Bang **

That noise, he knew that noise. Fear pooled into the pit of his stomach, and anxiety raced lightly across his spine. He...he 

He needed it to  _** S T O P ** _

Slowly, he turned and looked behind him.

Komeada was gone, as was the door. In its place was a guillotine. There was no blade, however, but instead, a thick, heavy block that shook the room each time it slammed down. Gears and different mechanisms spun at regular pacing intervals, raising the block high before releasing it to slam back against the hard conveyor.

The conveyor he was on.

This...this was his

** Bang **

_** Execution ** _

Lurching, Makoto tried to get out of the chair he was in, only to find himself tied down.

When had this happened? How had it appeared so quickly?

_Had he been drugged?_

Terror clogged his throat as he stared at the other people in the room. Their smiles were nothing but haunting now, sending shivers down his spine like soft touches, only to turn rough and scratch at his insides. There was a buzzing in his ears, only increasing as the slamming of the block began to shake and bounce the desk with each crash as he nearer closer and closer to his impending doom. 

They seemed to crowd him, slowly getting closer and closer until all Makoto could see was their bright red swirling eyes.

** Bang **

Makoto clenched his eyes shut 

** Bang **

And then he fell. 

~~_ Down down down....the trash chute  _ ~~

The last thing Makoto saw was the Remnants of Despair peering over him, with Nagito waving as he barrelled deeper and deeper into the black void of darkness and despair.

* * *

As the other Remnants of Despair hurriedly ran out of the room to begin the hunt for the Ultimate Hope, Nagito slowly made his way back to the back of the room, disappearing into the shadows.

“And just like that, all the pieces are in place to create the most wonderful, brightest hope.”

Nagito smiled to himself.

“All you have to do is try your hardest, My Beloved Hope...”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, did I say we were going to meet Kamukura in this chapter? Lol guess I lied. But srsly I was going too but then the chapter got too long so I cut it
> 
> Next Chapter:
> 
> We actually meet Burnt Ramen and Orange Juice in the next chapter, with Kamu-Kamu overreacting hardcore, Naeggi using his words to dispel bad situations, and Pickles and Marshmellow are Partners in Crimes  
> \---  
> Oh no no, 12 people in the room Naegi? I wonder where the others are~?


	3. He Has A Gun

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My kamudaddy’s got a gun  
> My kamudaddy’s got a gun  
> My kamudaddy’s got a gun  
> You better run  
> My kamudaddy’s got a gun  
> My kamudaddy’s got a gun  
> My kamudaddy’s got a gun  
> Ga-ga-ga-ga-ga
> 
> -Makoto

Faster faster faster

He was falling, he knew that

Faster faster faster

And he wasn't stopping

He wasn't going to stop

There was no way to go but down, no way to stop it. No point in trying.

He closes his eyes as he falls further, trusting his luck to keep him safe.

_ ( There’s no Alter Ego to save you here) _

...

And then the parachute erupts open.

_’My luck strikes again’_ Makoto thinks in grim amusement as he silently floats down to the Monokuma infested town.

* * *

Crashing down, Makoto felt himself erupt in pain. Wincing, he muttered to himself, slowly getting out from underneath the Monokuma coloured parachute.

“W-what the hell was that?!” Makoto screamed to himself in his confusion, gazing out at the city from underneath his parachute.

He couldn’t recognize where he was, so that meant that he wasn’t in the same area of the city that he was before.

Slowly getting out from underneath the parachute, he pulled his hoodie over his head and wrapped his arms around his stomach.

He kicked the disgusting parachute that looked just like his constant tormentor and turned around, slowly making his way across the building, only to lurch back with a shriek as a rattle suddenly shook the chain-link fence that surrounded the roof.

A Monokuma abruptly poked his head up, claw poking into the fence as it climbed higher and higher, mismatched eyes never leaving his hazel ones.

Makoto scurried back as two others came from the other sides of the walls, faces held in arrogant smiles as they cocked their heads towards him.

Makoto moved until his back hit the chain-link fence. Unable to go any further he slid down and wrapped his hands over his head, trying to curl himself into the smallest ball possible.

Sweating, he closed his eyes and shoved himself even farther into the fence as the Monokuma’s loud steps echoed towards him, mechanical laughter playing loudly in his ears, making him wince.

_ I don't want to die I don't want to die I don't want to die I don't want to die I don't want to die I don't want to die I don't want to die I don't want to die I don't want to die - _

A gunshot echoed through the air, ripping through Makoto’s eardrums and causing him to remove his hands from his head and instead plant them roughly into his thighs, breathing heavily.

A Monokuma fell to the floor with a loud crash, his lookalike following suit a few moments later. From his line of sight Makoto couldn't see anything, so he slowly lifted his head, gazing at his unknown saviour.

Pushing himself up into a sitting position, he gaped at the new individual.

He had his back to Makoto, so the only thing the boy could make out was that he was wearing a suit -tie ruffling up in the wind-, and his hair was really...well it was really long, like falling to the floor long.

It streamed behind him in the wind like a cape a superhero would wear, flowing out like wings.

Suddenly, as though he noticed someone was watching him (her? Them? It? Makoto honestly couldn't tell), he tilted his head to look behind him, directly at Makoto.

He had a single piece of hair falling down the middle of his face, but that wasn't the detail that etched itself into Makoto’s brain.

It was his eyes. Sharp, red, blazing eyes that etched themselves deep into the depths of Makoto’s mind.

But, they weren't swirling.

_ That, that’s a good thing, right? That means he’s on my side _

As Makoto continued to stare up in awe, the other man looked away, crouching down beside one of the destroyed Monokuma robots, putting a hand straight through it's stomach, ripping it open.

”Uh, hi” Makoto waved awkwardly, trying to break the sudden tension that seemed to have developed between the two. 

The unknown man ignored him, continuing his scrimmage in the Monokuma’s stomach. Suddenly, he ripped his hand away, a small device in his hands.

”A bomb”

”A what?!” Makoto screeched, pushing his head further into his hoodie as the long-haired man stood up again.

”A bomb” He clarified again, before he wound his arm back in a way that would make Leon jealous and threw it over the roof. A few seconds passed before it blew up, smoke coming out from where it had landed.

Turning back, the man strode over to him briskly, his eyes fastened on the Ultimate Lucky Hope like a predator would to it's prey.

The intense eye contact was too much for Makoto, who ducked his eyes down and stared at the floor, avoiding the other.

...

He had really nice shoes.

Abruptly, the man reached out a hand and yanked on Makoto’s hood, and with a gasp the boy jerked his head up to make eye contact with the long haired man.

Staring down at him, the stranger narrowed his eyes ever so slightly, and if he hadn’t been so used to Kyoko he wouldn’t have even noticed it.

A frown was imprinted on the male’s face, engraved into him like marble. He was tall, not as tall as Komeada but Makoto still had to stare up to look him in the eyes.

“Makoto Naegi, previous Ultimate Lucky Student and currently the Ultimate Hope. One of the six survivors of the Killing School Life. Do you have any idea what is going on?”

”Uh” Makoto rubbed his cheek in confusion, smiling with inner turmoil brimming under his skin. ”No...?”

“...Kamukura Izuru”

_ Huh? _

“I-Is that your name? Kamukura Izuru?”

**_ Kamukura Izuru has been added to your mental notebook _ **

Kamukura(?) choose simply not to respond, brushing his hair aside and kicking the destroyed robotic bear onto it’s side. It’s nightmarish face peered at Naegi in mock joy, and Makoto could still hear his tormenters laughter ringing in his ears. He bristled at the thought, grimly frowning as he scooted away from it.

”How boring. Everything about you is so utterly predictable. I would have hoped that since you were the Ultimate Lucky student you would have been at least the slightest bit amusing, but you're as boring as I expected”

Kamukura’s chin dipped. The long strands of hair that fell over his face hid any expression he might have made.

Surprisingly, Makoto wasn’t upset at the degrading words Kamukura used to speak to him. Anything was better then the obsessive way Komeada spoke, or the despairful rants of the Remnants of Despair. It almost reminded him of Togami with the arrogance and all!

Suddenly, Kamukura tilted his head to the side, eyes leaning to the left.

”...Is something wrong?” Makoto questioned, slowly getting to his feet, only to wince in pain.

_ I guess the fall was harder than I thought _

”There’s more” Kamukura stated, apathy overtaking his entire persona. ”How boring...”

Trailing off, he turned to look Makoto in the eyes, gesturing towards a small area behind a wall.

Veering, he paced briskly over to the area and turned, disappearing from sight.

”Hey, wait for me!” Makoto cried, stumbling his way over to where the other had disappeared to, only to stop short as another Monokuma climbed up the fence, leaping over it and running towards him.

Not knowing what else to do, Makoto clenched his eyes shut and moved to get his gun-

Suddenly, as the Monokuma lept to tear him to shreds, a bullet struck out, tearing through the atmosphere and hitting the Monokuma, throwing it out of the air.

Makoto couldn't move

It had been so close to his face, if the bullet had been a little more to the left it would have-

Abruptly, a hand latched onto his arm, and Makoto let out a yelp as Kamukura pulled him away, dragging him towards the other side of the roof. 

”How annoying” declared the man with so much certainty that Makoto was sure he would believe everything he said.

When they were out of sight of the Monokuma, Kamukura pushed him to the ground.

With a cry Makoto tumbled to the floor, flinching at the pain that was still in his legs from the fall.

”You truly have no uses, and it wouldn't be difficult to kill you now, only to rid the world of an individual as boring as you”

Kamukura tapped the pistol he had on his thigh, and if one saw him at this very moment you could say he was uncaring of his surroundings. Makoto knew better though. After the killing game, he had learned to look at every little detail, and it was obvious that Kamukura wasn't the type to do anything at all without an alter reason. He wanted Makoto to let down his guard.

_ Hah! I've spent too much time with Kirigiri to be fooled by something like that _

Makoto was prouder than he would have liked to admit.

”Hmm” Kamukura hummed, gazing down at him. “I wonder if the detective girl taught you all that.”

“Ehh? Was I talking out loud?” Makoto questioned out loud, mostly to himself, smiling slightly in question. Kamukura responded anyway, although Makoto could tell that he didn't want to, annoyance seeping into his voice as he did.

”No. You are simply easy to read”

Makoto refused to be offended by that statement.

”No I'm not!” Okay maybe it had gotten to him a little.

”This is boring. Your refusal to see your faults is boring. You are boring. Everything is boring”

The red-eyed man rubbed his gun against his forehead and sighed in apathy. Narrowing his eyes, Kmaukura abruptly pulled the gun away from his own head and aimed it at Makoto’s. 

Makoto wrenched his shoulders back as the long haired man steadily held the gun right in-between his two eyes.

”Give me one interesting reason as to why I should let you live”

”Huh?”

”One, two, three, four...”

Oh

_ Oh _

”W-Wait a second! Hold on!”

”Five, six...” he drawled, monotone voice counting down as he casually pushed at the trigger.

”You don't have to do this! We can work things out!”

”Seven, better find an entertaining reason soon Naegi” he said blankly, emotionlessly.

He...

_ He was actually going to do it, he was going to kill him... _

_ Maybe he could make a run for it...? _

“Eight, don’t even think about it. You won’t be able to escape me. It’s pointless to try”

_ The lack of morality was truly terrifying...is this what the Tragedy, **Despair** did to people? _

“Nine...”

”You’re wrong! Nothing is pointless if you have hope that you can succeed! If you decide that everything is pointless, then what's the point of doing anything?”

” ...”

_ ”That is the type of thinking that will get you killed in this world” _

_ It, it worked? _

”But, I'm still alive, right?” Makoto said semi-enthusiastically, his eyes going cross-eyed trying to keep his sights on the gun,

”That mentality may have worked for you in the killing game, but it will only fail you here. You will kill yourself before you truly understand that”

”I thought it was pointless to try and escape Hopes Peak, but I had hope, and I managed to escape because I believed, because  we  believed”

“It might be pointless to try and escape Towa city, but I'm still going to try my best, because I have hope!”

Kamukura stares down at him, eyes furrowed slightly as his hair falls over his eyes, covering them from view.

”...Perhaps you're more interesting than I originally thought.”

Makoto liked to imagine that was code for ’You’ve impressed me’

”Is that a good thing?” Makoto asked the red-eyed man...

Only his eyes weren't red anymore. 

They were flickering, flashing between red and a hazely green. They glinted for a bit, gun in hand twitching as his entire body shook like he was in shock. Makoto slowly got up, keeping his eyes on the gun...

Then they stopped at green.

Almost immediately, Kamukura dropped his gun, shying away from it like it burned him.

Rubbing his head, Kamukura stumbled bit, kneading at his forehead as he blinked repeatedly, trying to get his sight back to normal.

”...” Suddenly, Kamukura(?) gazed up at him, and his eyes widened in shock.

”Who, who the hell are you?!” He pointed at him, fiercely glaring at him with determination of some sort. His voice had lost it’s monotone apathetic nature, leaving in its place an emotional aggressiveness.

_ Wait _

”H-Huh?! What are you talking about?!”

“Wait” He held up his hand suddenly, closing his eyes in deep thought. “You’re Makoto Naegi right? I remember seeing you on the broadcast”

“Uh, yea! I kinda just told you that Kamukura-kun” well actually you already knew. I didn't have to tell you anything.

The way Kamukura flinched back at that, as though Makoto had physically hurt him, confused the maple-haired boy.

“D-don’t, call me that” he muttered, shoving himself away from Makoto’s peering eyes.

“H-huh?” Makoto rubbed his cheek in confusion, openly gaping at the other.

”Don’t compare me to that  **_monster_** ” Kamukura (or Not-Kamukura) hissed out, clutching his head and backing away.

”Um, are you okay?” Makoto cried out in concern, cautiously making his way towards Not-Kamukura.

”No! Stop it! I'm not him I'm not him I'm not him..”

As he began uttering incomprehensible words, Not-Kamukura slid down the chain-link fence, curling himself up into a ball and wrapping his arms around his legs.

Makoto didn't know what to do, so he did what he did best. He used his words.

”Hey, I don't know what's happening, but I need you to tell me what's going on!” getting on his knees, he took the long-haired man’s face in his hands, pulling him out of the cacoon he had made. 

Tears were streaming down his face as he gazed up at Makoto, and said boy wiped them away, leaving nothing but dried spots behind.

”I’m not, I'm not, I'm not-”

”Please, tell me if I can trust you or not!”

That seemed to snap him out of his stupor, and he slowly made his way to his feet, nodding.

”Y-Yea, you can trust me” He said, that same determination coming back into his eyes.

”Well then we have to go! There's too many to fight, so we just have too-”

”No.” Not-Kamukura stated firmly 

”N-no? What do you mean ’No’?!” Makoto cried out, his annoyance and confusion at everything finally making itself clear.

”There’s no other way out of the building. We’re going to have to fight our way through them” Not-Kamukura confirmed his confusion.

”This is fine. As long as  **_ he  _ ** cooperates I can take them out like hotcakes. I can do this!” Not-Kamukura explained, walking over to where he once was and awkwardly picking up his (not his?) gun by the top with two fingers.

Whirling around, he set his sights on Makoto, or more accurately, Makoto’s gun.

”...Kamukura’s gun. Where did you get that?” Not-Kamukura questioned in...third person. 

”Uh, I found it in an apartment I was in. It was just lying there” Makoto admitted, suddenly embarrassed. 

”There’s no way Izuru would just leave his gun lying around. He wanted you specifically to find it.”

Turning around again, he gestured toward the Monokuma.

“Come on, let's go destroy some Monokuma.” Suddenly, he grabbed Makoto’s arm and pulled him out into open, too quick for him to process.

“W-Wait, wait! I’m not readyyyy-!”

A Monokuma noticed them and came barreling forwards. Not-Kamukura closed his eyes, waiting.

“Um, now would be a good time to go all shooty shooty!” Makoto cried out from behind him, slowly readying his gun when it looked like Not-Kamukura wasn’t going to do anything when...

His posture straightened, he stopped bending, and he held his hand calm as he raised the gun he had been so reverent to touch just a few moments ago and shot at the Monokuma, tearing it down.

He tilted his head towards him, and his bright red eyes seared into Makoto’s soul.

“Don’t get in my way”

And with those parting words, Not-Kamukura (Or just Kamukura? Makoto was so confused) strode into the mob, a lot like Byakuya. Unlike Byakuya however, he took out the Monokuma without even trying. The way he shot them was like an angel of some sort, gliding through his enemies and taking them out like a ghoul in the night. 

Makoto would’ve spent some more time gaping but a Monokuma took away his attention, and by the time he was finished (Not?) Kamukura had already destroyed the others.

When Makoto ran over to him, his eyes were green again, and he was twisting the gun like he hadn’t just taken out 20 Monokuma with it.

“That was so cool!” Makoto cried, jumping up and down in front of the taller man, eyes wide in awe. “You were like an angel, or a ghost, or an assassin! How did you do that?” 

Not-Kamukura looked down at him, muttering under his breath, “I don’t know. I can’t see anything when he’s in control”

“Huh? When he’s in control?”

“Yeah, Kamukura can see everything when I’m fronting, but when he is I’m completely powerless. It’s so stupid how he can take control whenever he wants while I have to bow down to his every whim.”

Not-Kamukura kneeded his forehead, a headache pounding at his skull. 

”Kamukura? fronting? Powerless? I'm sorry but I'm so confused” Makoto admitted, and at the annoyed look Not-Kamukura gave him he also felt incredibly embarrassed.

”Hey! It's not my fault I don't understand! You're talking crazy, like you're two different people!”

Not-Kamukura gave him a dumbfounded look, and Makoto’s lips formed a small ’o’.

”Yes, we're two different people. Two minds one body”

”Oh” Makoto should've realized that. If he thought about it he could see how drastic the change had been. It was like Toko and Syo in a way.

”Well, I still don't know you’re name. I can't just keep calling you Not-Kamukura” Makoto pouted. Not-Kamukura opened his mouth at that, looking like he was about to say something but decided against it, closing his mouth and shaking his head.

”Hinata. Hajime Hinata. Nice to meet you”

**_ Hajime Hinata has been added to your mental notebook _ **

**_ Hinata and Kamukura’s condition (D.I.D?) has been added to your mental notebook _ **

”Hi Hinata-kun! My name is Makoto Naegi, although you already know that hehe, it's nice to meet you too!”

Makoto held out his hand, only to bring it back when Hinata didn't accept it, opting to stare at him in confusion.

”I-is something wrong?” Makoto questioned, smiling in confusion. Hajime continued to stare at him.

”...Just like that?” he questioned, staring at Makoto like he’d just grown another head.

”...just like, what?” Makoto answered, still smiling awkwardly.

”I just told you I have two minds in the same body and you just” he waved his hand around the air, ”accepted it?!”

Makoto stared at him for a second, before bringing his hand to his mouth to hide his giggles.

”What’s so funny?! This is serious!” Hinata demanded, which only made Makoto laugh harder.

”Hinata-kun, it's the end of the world, and my friend, her name is Toko, you might've heard of her, she has a split personality as well! D.I.D which-”

”No” Hinata cut him off

”No?” Makoto questioned, ending his answer and staring at the other in confusion.

”Not D.I.D. It's something else” He turned away and rubbed at his shoulders, before crossing them and looking away, hair falling over his eyes.

”Oh? Then what is it?” Makoto questioned, to which Hinata responded with silence.

After a few seconds, Hinata spoke. ”It’s not important”

Well, that wasn't an answer.

”But I-”

”I said it's not important” Hinata fiercely glared at him, cutting off the conversation completely. Makoto cowered away from his gaze.

_ That seems like a touchy subject. I'll stop asking him about it. For now _

**_ Hajime/Izuru’s condition has been updated: Not D.I.D _ **

”Well whatever, if you believe me that's good. It means I don't have to take the time to convince you” Hinata explained, uncrossing his arms and leaving them at his side.

”Now that I think about it, I feel like I've heard the name ’Kamukura Izuru’ from somewhere before,” Makoto thought out loud, closing his eyes as he tried to recall where he remembered the name from.

”Oh! That's the founder of Hope’s Peaks Academy’s name! I remember seeing it when I was trapped in the school. But that doesn't make any sense...” Makoto trailed off.

”Actually” Hinata started. ”That’s who he was named after” He admitted.

Makoto didn't even bother to hide his shock. ”Huh? Named after?”

”Yeah, but that doesn't matter right now.” Hinata stopped the conversation before it could truly begin

_** Izuru Kamukura (Founder) and Izuru Kamukura (Now) has been added to your mental notebook ** _

_** Kamukura’s orgins (1/?) has been added to your mental notebook ** _

”Well, it seems helpful at least. Kamukura-Kun's fighting skills were really good! So we should be able to get though them easily! We’ll be free in no time!” Makoto cheered. 

”It’s not that simple. Kamukura only comes out when he wants to. I can't just call on him at will” Hajime sighed. “Fitting for someone as useless as me...”

“Huh? What was that?” Makoto queried, looking up at him.

”N-Nothing. What I'm trying to say is that you can't rely on him to help you. We’re on our own”

”I see...” suddenly, Makoto remembered.

”Wait! Byakuya! He was captured! I have to find him, and Toko! And I have to make sure my other friends are okay!”

Makoto looked at the ground sadly, trying to keep his hopes up. ”This is all my fault. If I had just stayed outside he would've never been caught...”

“Hey, there’s no use in wallowing in guilt” Suddenly, Hinata was clutching at his shoulders, shaking them. “How are you going to save them if you don’t believe?”

“Yeah...Yeah you’re right! Thank you Hinata-Kun, I needed that” Smiling up at him, Makoto threw his hand up in the air. “Lets go!” 

Hinata turned his head away, crossing his arms again. “I didn’t even do anything...” he grumbled 

“We have to get out of this building, and then we have to escape!” Makoto asserted, before turning and looking for the exit.

“Well, after you” Hajime said, gesturingtowards the door.

“Hey! Why do I have to go first?”

“You’re the one with the gun!”

“You have one too!”

“Well I can’t use mine!”

“Fine!”

Hinata sighed again, rubbing his shoulders. “Don’t worry, if you’re really in trouble I know Kamukura will step in. He doesn’t like interesting people dying on him”

“Come on. We need to go before more Monokuma show up”

Makoto nodded in determination. ”Yeah, yeah let's go”

Turning, Makoto made his way towards the door. Turning around, he went to call for Hinata.. 

Only to find him standing right behind him. Makoto yelped, stumbling right into the others chest. “Sorry, sorry,” he apologized, pushing himself off the other

”I didn’t know you were right behind me” rubbing the back of his neck, Makoto turned back around. One of Hinata’s eyebrows raised, lips quirked in a small smirk. Makoto grumbled as he heard the green-eyed man chuckle.

“It wasn’t funny” he pouted, to which Hinata responded with an, “It was kinda funny”

Makoto continued on his way towards the door, only to stop short when he came across a...Monokuma Duck training potty?

“What, what is that?” Makoto asked Hinata. 

“You say that as though you expect me to know” Hinata rubbed his head, “Let’s just....what are you doing?”

Makoto slowly shimmed onto the potty, and was surprised to find that it felt surprisingly...good? Like, comfortable.

“Hinata-kun! Come sit down. It’s actually quite relaxing!”

“....No. I’m not doing that”

“Come on, pleasssssseee?” Makoto begged, staring up at the other with puppy dog eyes. 

Hinata shook his head, but climbed onto the back of the training potty all the same.

“I was never good at saying no to children” he grumbled. Makoto wasn’t even upset at the child grab.

“...wow. It actually is kind of relaxing”

“Right?” Makoto said. “You would never expect it...”

“No!” Hinata shook his head and lept off of the potty. “Let’s just get out of here”

Makoto nodded, getting up. Moving across the roof he opened the door and walked down the stairs, his new long haired ally following close behind him.

A whiles away, a white haired man was on the phone. 

”Have you captured Naegi Komaru yet Miss. Monaca?”

”Yup! Meow! Monaca has already sent the demon into the world of Towa!”

”And Miss. Serial Killer ?”

”Already done! She is to keep The Demon in the city if she wants to see her master again!”

”Perfect. Your help is appreciated Miss. Monaca”

”Monaca! Wants! To! Know! Where! New Big! Bro! Makoto! is!

”Don’t worry, everything is going according to plan. Kamukura might be an issue, but he won’t do anything unless it’s interesting for him. The useless reserve course student won’t be an issue whatsoever”

“Very well. Monaca is excited”

”All the pieces are in place. With the threat of his sister and his friend, My hope will have no choice but to feel despair, but then he will overcome it like a shining star”

”I am excited too, Miss. Monaca”

At the opposite side of the city, a serial killer points her scissors at a school girl

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TL;DR: I think Kamudaddy has a gun guys, be scared. Hajimeme has a breakdown, Makoto makes two new friends very quickly (Makoto: It is a blessing and a curse) and they become a very hopeful trio, Marshmello man and Despair. Jr scheme in the shadows, and Cum Eggi and Books/Murder Mcgee become acquainted I guess. Richgami’s chilling in a jail cell somewhere 
> 
> Next chapter:
> 
> Hajime talks about how, ”No, he does not have D.I.D”, Makoto realizes that the world is far more fucked up then he originally thought, and Hajime explains how life during the Tragedy was like.  
> \---  
> In this fic, instead of the surgery taking away Hinata’s personality, it just created a new one and gave it all the talents and made it the main personality. Hajime still existed but he had no control unless Izuru decides to give it to him.
> 
> Hajime is going to be far more self-deprecating in this fic then in canon, since after he took the surgery instead of giving him talents it just gave him an annoying roommate, and he kinda hates himself (poor boy Makoto love him). He's going to consider himself useless a lot of the time and it's just going to be a good time for everyone, especially Makoto ’No you have to feel good about yourself and Hope’ Naegi
> 
> Komaru and Toko are not going to be a main part of this fic. I'm just going to reference them from time to time
> 
> See you next week...I hope :D


	4. Two Hopes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two hopes, and one self deprecating reserve course student 
> 
> Enjoy!

Slowly going down the stairs, Makoto halted to a stop, as did Hajime.

”Is this a hospital?” Makoto questioned, finger going to his cheek as he stared around the building he was in.

”Yeah, I think so” Hajime agreed, brushing his hair out of his face and crossing his arms. ”There won't be anything useful here though. Most people took all the medical supplies right when the Tragedy began”

Nodding, Makoto turned away from the gate and made direct eye contact with a corpse.

It was staring at him, dead eyes glazed over as it looked straight through him. 

It honestly said something when Makoto didn’t even flinch. He was getting way too used to this.

Cautiously, Makoto moved towards it and looked down, intense sadness welling through his entire being. Hajime stayed back as Makoto closed his eyes, waiting until the other boy came back.

“It’s so messed up...” Makoto whispered. “All these people dead, for no reason. So cruel” Hajime said nothing, opting to stay quiet as Makoto mourned.

”How, how are you so calm?” Makoto whimpered, clutching himself as he thought of all the pain so many people must have gone through. Hajime dipped his chin, hair falling over his face to cover his eyes.

”After a while, you get used to the death” Hajime simply responded. ”Come on, let's keep moving.”

The other boy nodded slowly, refusing to take the hand from his mouth as stinging teardrops that had fallen through his clenched eyes ran down his cheeks, Makoto stumbled, following Hajime past the bodies and towards a shut well, shutter.

”...Huh? What's this doing here?” Hajime moved to grab at the shutter, latching onto it and yanking on it a few times. When it didn't move, he let go, moving a hand to grab onto his chin.

”I’ve never seen this before...What's going on?” Makoto walked over to him and tried looking past the shutter and down the stairway behind it, only to come up empty-handed.

”Can you open it?” Makoto questioned, starting at Hinata who was still in deep thought. 

”The powers out. There should be a power switch somewhere around here. We need to find it” and with that Hajime strode off past the shutter, Makoto trailing behind him as fast as he could. 

”P-Please slow down! My legs aren't as long as yours.”

Hajime stopped thankfully, waiting for him to catch up before turning left. ”After you” he gestured towards the door at the end of the foyer, and Makoto braced his forearm into the door, pushing it open. 

Entering the room, Hajime pointed to something. ”There! That's a power panel. We need to find a way to turn it on” 

”How do we do that?” Makoto queried, aiming his hacking gun at the panel. Hajime awkwardly rubbed his hands together.

”I...don’t know?”

”Well, that’s alright! We’ll figure it out together!” Makoto assured, turning towards a shelf at the side of the room and walking towards it. 

Ignoring the quiet ’to positive’ from Hinata, Makoto picked up a letter that lay on one of the shelves.

It was someone describing their trip into the Tragedy. Makoto had to stop reading after the writer started describing corpses. 

”...Hey, Makoto?” Hajime called out. He was looking at the power panel, hand on his chin again. Makoto ran over to him, cocking his head. 

Hajime pointed at something, and Makoto followed his line of sight until he set his eyes on a button, not unlike the one from his prison room.

“Can you try using your move bullet there? It might do something”

Makoto, nodding, aimed at the button and shot. As it hit the button head-on, a creaking sound of the shutter being opened could be heard. Makoto cheered as Hajime made his way to the door.

“Uhm, Hinata-kun?” Makoto asked, suddenly going serious. 

“Huh? What is it?” Hajime turned, raising an eyebrow.

”You uh, you said this was Kamukura-kun’s gun, right?” Makoto gestured at the gun in hand, holding it out in a shooting position.

“Then, shouldn’t you be using it?”

Hinata winced, turning away.

“Uh, well, Kamukura wanted you to use the gun, right?” Hajime clarifies. “Then I probably shouldn’t use it”

Makoto blinked, before nodding his head in understanding. 

Opening the door again, he exited the room, Hajime on his tail as they began making their way back, only to be stopped as a Monokuma came out of nowhere.

“W-Where did that even come from?!” Hajime cried as he backed away. 

“Naegi-kun, shoot it!” Hajime cried, hand going up into the air as he pointed straight at the Monokuma, and Makoto fumbled with the gun as the Monokuma began making his way ever closer.

With a cry of ‘Break’, the Monokuma fell to the floor. Hajime turned to him, impressed.

With a smile, he nodded and continued, Makoto running after him.

Going through the shutter, Makoto turned to Hajime, an eager look on his face.

“Which way out of here?” 

“Why do you think I would know?” He questioned incredulously, ducking past a bloody Monokuma and pressing himself against a wall, waiting for Makoto to shoot it.

He did and turned to Hajime, who slowly unattached himself from the side. “You mean you don’t know how to get out here?”

Hajime didn’t respond, but Makoto didn’t need an answer.

“Okay. Let's just hope we choose the right way” And with that, he started off, Hajime trailing after him. They walked in silence for a few more minutes as they traversed the halls of the building, Hajime following Naegi closely in order to keep an eye on him. 

He seemed to be deep in thought, looking straight through him, like he saw someone who wasn't truly there when looking at him.

Since Makoto was staring at Hajime, he completely missed the giant hole in the floor. Stumbling, Makoto fell forward, only to be stopped by Hajime yanking at his hood and pulling him back.

”Are you okay?” He asked, concern flashing onto his face. Makoto, wide-eyed, nodded slowly, his blood rushing in his ears, drowning out everything else.

”Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks”

Hajime nodded in relief, letting go of his hood and letting Makoto get himself together. 

Avoiding the hole, Makoto slowly inched across the wall, holding his breath. Yanking a hand out, he fumbled for the door, letting out a sigh of relief when it opened.

”Come on Hinata-kun!” and with that Makoto entered the room, Hajime grumbling as he joined him.

As soon as he walked in, he came face to face with a child. Makoto cried out, stumbling into Hajime’s chest again as he pulled his gun up, aiming at the kid.

She (Makoto was assuming it was a girl) had a Monokuma type helmet on her head. 

“Don’t worry” Hajime suddenly rubbed at his shoulder, pulling him off. “All the kids in the city look like that, wearing those Monokuma helmets”

”Oh” Makoto stammered getting off of the other and gradually making his way towards her. Hajime raised an eyebrow, before walking over to where the two stood.

”All the kids in this wear them” Hajime clarified, looking at Makoto who was still shell-shocked in confusion. ”It’s probably the same people who control the Monokuma”

Wait, that broadcast...what did that kid say her name was again?   
  


**_ Monica and the Warriors Of Hope have been added to your mental notebook _ **

Bound with this newfound information, Makoto peered at the Monokuma kid.

”Uh, hi” Makoto half-heartedly waved, growing thoroughly discouraged when she made no sign of acknowledgement.

”You shouldn't bother. They only ever talk to each other” crossing his arms, Hajime flipped his hair out of his face, looking away.

Could've told me that before 

Shaking his head, Makoto brushed himself off. 

”Why are they wearing helmets?” Makoto cocked his head at the other man, blinking. Hajime shrugged, shaking his head.

”No clue. They never talk. They're with Monokuma. They're working with him to kill adults. It's been like that since the beginning” He shivered, rubbing at his arms. He looked like he was about to say more, when the Monokuma girl giggled, a little teehee.

She moved suddenly, extending her hand and opening her little chubby fist. A few bullets lay in hand.

”Bullets?” Makoto questioned, before cautiously taking them from her. He inspected them, eyes widening when he realized what they were for. 

”T-these are for my gun!”

”But why? Why help us like this?” Makoto questioned, eyes furrowing as he inspected them. Hajime leaned over him, looking at the little pieces of metal in his hand from over his shoulder.

”Who knows? My best guess is that they're carrying out someone else's order”

“You should probably take them” He looked away from Makoto, re-crossing his arms. “We should take all the help we can get, right?”

_But who would do this?_ Makoto thought, to himself, pushing the door open.

_ Nagito? _

He forgot about the hole, and Naegi let out another yelp as he almost fell again. Hajime grasped his arm this time, rolling his eyes as Makoto got his footing together. 

”You’re really clumsy, huh?” it wasn't said in a mean way, playful more than anything.

Makoto pouted. ”Am not! I'm just...”

Makoto looked away, and the playfulness in Hajime’s voice disappeared.

”Hey, is something wrong?” Makoto looked back only to see Hajime looking at him in concern. 

”H-Huh? Oh, yeah. It's just, I'm worried about my friends. I just want to know if they're okay”

Hajime bit his lip, un-crossing his arms.

”I can't tell you if they are” he started. ”They might not be, but your whole thing is hope, right? So, you just have to hope they’re okay. Not much else you can do.”

”I-I guess you're right” Makoto admitted. ”They would also be upset if they knew I was doubting them” The sandy-haired boy chuckled, thinking off his friend's reactions.

Byakuya would be annoyed, wondering why a peasant like him was questioning his well being.

Toko would probably just think he was calling her ugly, and Syo would be mock offended.

He liked thinking about his friends. It gave him hope that everything would be okay.

Feeling determination flow through him again, he smiled at Hajime in gratitude. ”Thanks. I really needed that”

Hajime didn't respond, choosing to simply nod before walking out the door, avoiding the hole. Makoto did the same, far slower than his predecessor.

Shooting another Monokuma, Makoto entered the room it was blocking. It was something akin to a work area, with desks and shelves. Makoto walked over to the main desk sitting in the corner of the room, Hajime striding after him.

Gazing at the items laid and thrown aside, Makoto’s eyes were caught by a specific book.

”High school senior Sae Sunakosaka has 24 split personalities...and she gains 24 bodies what does that even mean?” 

”Why does it matter?” Hajime questioned, looking over his shoulder and reading the blurb for himself. 

Makoto chooses not to respond, letting Hajime read the blurb out loud for him.

”But there's no need for 24 Sae Sunakosaka’s, and thus the killing of me against me commences...like a killing game” Hajime related, raising an eyebrow.

And suddenly the book was being dropped as Makoto curled into himself, shying away. 

”S-sorry, bad choice of words huh?” Hajime reached down and picked up the dropped book. Makoto shook himself, getting all the wrinkles out of his body.

”Y-Yeah, sorry” Hajime shook his head, rejecting the apology. ”Not your fault. I shouldn't have said that”

He looked back at the book, Makoto gradually making his way towards him to peer at it as well.

”I think it has something to do with D.I.D...” Makoto mumbled. ”Hey, Hinata-kun? Are you sure you don't have dissociative identity disorder?”

”No! No, I don't” he grumbled, dropping the book onto the table and letting his hair fall back over his face.

”But then, what do you have? I'm just, so confused” he admitted. Perfect! The chance to ask practically fell into his lap.

”...” Makoto couldn't tell what Hajime was thinking. Just when he was about to change the subject...

”I just,” he put his hands slowly into the air like he was hoping an excuse would just plop into his head.

”I just don't feel comfortable talking about it...” he mumbled out, gripping at his hair.

”O-Oh. I'm sorry Hinata-kun” suddenly, fear was tugging at his chest. ”I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable...”

Hajime shook him off, shaking his head and flipping his hair back into place, a single stand falling down the middle of his face.

”It’s nothing, just” he looked away, arms crossed as he glared at the wall. ”Just don't ask again”

Makoto nodded, suddenly unaware of where to put his hands. Hands laid jangly at his sides, hacking gun unmoving in his hands.

”Sorry...” he said softly, and Hajime rubbed at the bridge of his nose. 

”It’s fine, it's fine. Look, let's just go”

Turning away, Hajime strode out of the room, not giving Makoto another look.

_ Great. Now he hates me _

Racing out of the room, he saw Hajime waiting out by the door. 

”Uhm, Hinata-kun?” Said man stopped, let out a sigh, and turned around, annoyance prevalent on his face.

”What?” he cocked an eyebrow, crossing his arms.

”U-Uh...” the room was suddenly way too hot, and his hoodie too tight.

”Spit it out” at Hinata’s demand, Makoto yelped, stumbling on his words.

”Kamukura-kun’s not going to, ya know...” he raised his Hacking gun and gestured to it.

”Shoot you? No, he only does anything if it provides him interest of any sort. He probably just wanted to see if your reaction would be funny or interesting” 

”Oh, so he's a nihilist?” Hajime snickered at that, eyes creasing. ”Yeah, you could say that”

Turning around he started walking, arms crossed again. 

“Come on, we need to get out of this building” he gestured to behind him, facing forward. Makoto smiled, mouth creasing and dimples appearing on his two sides.

”Coming!” chasing after him, Hajime stood still as he waited for Makoto to catch up.

”You’re kinda slow, huh?” Hajime raised his eyebrow again, lips dipping in a small smile as he looked down at the other's bobbing head.

”I’m not slow!” Makoto pouted, looking up at the green-eyed man. ”You’re just tall”

Hajime’s eyebrows furrowed at that, peering down at him. ”I’m not even that tall though...”

Makoto scrunched his eyes at him, lips compressing together as he studied the long-haired man looming over him. 

”Maybe not to you, but to me, you look like a towering woolly mammoth! I'm only 5’3 you know!”

Hajime continued to peer at him, managing to keep his poker face together for a few more moments before erupting into a bout of giggles.

”W-Wolly mammoth? Really?” he chuckled, shaking his head before straightening himself and shaking his head.

”Where, where did that even come from?” he questioned, lips slightly upturned as he gazed down at the boy in front of him, who was trying and failing to keep his own giggles under control.

”S-Sorry. But you are!” shaking his head again, Hajime ran after Makoto, who was making his way through another door. Its checkered pattern ran under his feet as he glanced around the new room they had entered.

“W-Where are we now?” Makoto cried out, annoyance and fear making itself prevalent finally after staying hidden for so long.

“No clue” looking around the room, he made eye contact with an arcade machine. Makoto seemed to notice it at the same time he did, as he ran over to it.

“I’ve seen those Monokuma kids playing with arcade machines like this one before....” Hajime mumbled to himself. Makoto didn’t respond, opting to move his hands onto the arcade machine's buttons.

“I don’t think they’re actually arcade machines, though” Hajime stated, looking over Makoto’s shoulders again as he gazed at the Monokuma machine.

“H-Huh? Then what is it?” Makoto clicked a few buttons, trying to get the machine to work. 

“I think it’s a surveillance camera, and I bet it’s for a room close by” 

Makoto finally found the right button to press, and the screen lit up to greet him. He jerked back with a startled gasp at all the Monokuma who were hovering around the room.

“So many of them...how are we going to get past them all?” Makoto cried out in confusion, hands latching onto the machine and looking at all the Monokuma. Hajime quickly reached out, clicking on one of the buttons.

“Hey, it moves! I think we have to find a route past all the Monokuma” he backed away as Makoto whipped around. 

With a determined glare, he started moving the camera around the room, Hajime occasionally chiming in with a stop or a ‘go that way...no, not that way!’

After a few more minutes, Makoto felt fully satisfied with his path to get past the Monokuma. Pulling out his hacking gun, he shot at the arcade machine.

Hajime jumped back at the sudden movement, before brushing himself off in annoyance. Huffing, he glared at the sandy-haired other, who was now rubbing his cheek in embarrassment.

“What was that for?!” He demanded, crossing his arms and glaring potently at the other. 

“T-The machine told me to shoot it...” he pulled at his collar when Hajime smacked his forehead.

“And you just believed it?!” Hajime let out a groan when Makoto chuckled softly. “Yes...?”

Shaking his head, he cocked his head at Makoto. “And what else did this magical machine tell you to do?” he queried.

”It told me to go to that door over there and go past the monokuma”

”Well then, let's go” with faux joy, he sauntered over to the door, waiting as Makoto wandered his way over.

”...Oh I'm supposed to go first, huh?” he giggled in embarrassment as Hajime resisted the urge to knead the bridge of his nose.

Makoto walked past him, practically running on the walls to avoid the monokuma, Hajime following behind him at a much calmer pace, albeit just as cautious. 

“Can you be a little quieter?!” Makoto whispered yelled from across the hall, and a Monokuma whipped his head towards them. Hajime waited till it had turned away completely before glaring at the shorter boy, who had already turned away and was almost to the exit.

“I’m being as quiet as I can! Not my fault you're probably as light as a damn feather” he harshly whispered back.

“Well then stop being a hulking giant and maybe you'll be quieter!”

“I’m not that tall! Jesus...” Makoto didn't seem to hear him, going through the orange door and holding it open for Hajime.

The two exited the building and Hajime slowly closed the door, trying his best not to alert the Monokuma.

“Well, I guess we made it out?” he smiled up softly at Hajime, rubbing his cheek as he grinned.

“Yeah yeah, I guess” Hajime grumbled slightly, still upset at the whole tall thing. Wasn't it supposed to be the other way around?! He was the one who was supposed to making fun of Makoto’s height!

“A-Are you...pouting” Makoto suddenly burst out into a grin, mirth practically spilling out of him.

“No! No I'm not...” he ducked his head, hair falling over his eyes as he looked away, not because he was pouting of course!

“I think it's cute! I-I mean, not in a weird way just...” he trailed off, looking away in embarrassment.

“Hah! Now you're the pouting one!” Hajime didn't like how competitive he was becoming. Makoto looked up at him in shock, before bursting out into another fit of giggles.

“...Hey, Hinata-kun?” Hajime raised an eyebrow, crossing his arms. “Yeah? What's up?”

“Do you have any idea where we are?” At Makoto’s question, Hajime gazed around, trying to piece together where they in fact were. He ended up shaking his head, shrugging his shoulders. 

“Sorry, no clue” Makoto sighed, bending over and dangling his hands to the ground. 

“Oh! Before I forget again, how did you know my name?” That shook Hinata out of his stupor, causing him to gape openly at the shorter boy below him. “H-Huh? What are you talking about? You introduced yourself to me...” Makoto shook his head.

“Sorry, I meant to say that Kamukura-kun knew who I was. I was wondering how he knew”

Hajime blinked, before rubbing at his forearms. 

“U-Uh, he um-!” suddenly, his eyes lit up. “The, the broadcast! Yeah, he um, he knew who you were from that! You're also kind of famous, you know? Ultimate Hope and all” he chuckled awkwardly, looking away.

Makoto’s eyes lit up, and he put a hand on his chin, nodding as he gazed at the floor. “Yeah, that makes sense...I should have thought of that...”

“Ha, yeah. Anyways, stop going all detective on me. Makes me nervous”

Makoto stopped at that, moving a hand to his cheek in embarrassment. “Hah, sorry Hinata-kun! Guess I've been spending way too much time with Kyoko...she’s the ultimate detective by the way”

Makoto closed his eyes, his smile falling away. “I really miss her. I hope she's okay...”

“I’m sure she's fine” Hajime quickly assured, stopping him before he could drown into the darkness of despair.

“Yeah, I just have to hope that i’ll get to see her again, and I will!” Makoto cheered, jumping into the air.

“I have to escape! There's no other choice” Makoto was suddenly determined, gripping at the hacking gun. “I need to fine Byakuya and Toko, and then I have to reunite with Kyoko and Hiro and Hina!”

“To care so much about others, and so strongly...you must be close” Hajime raised an eyebrow as Makoto made his promises to himself. 

“H-Huh? Well of course! They're all my greatest friends! I care so much about all of them” he stared up at Hajime in determination, clutching his fists to his chest. “So I just have to find them! They're probably worried about me, and I shouldn't worry them any longer than I have to!”

Hajime nodded, looking far away. “Must be nice, having so many people to care about...” he trailed off, dipping his hair over his eyes.

“Huh? Do you not have people to care about? You must have some friends.” 

Hajime just shrugged, looking down. 

“You don't make many friends during the tragedy. The end of the world isn't the time for friends”

“B-but that sounds so, so sad! And lonely” Makoto gazed up at Hajime, a frown tugging at his lips.

“Don't worry about it” Hajime shook his head, uncrossing his arms and leaving them at his side. “Anyways, escape?”

“Yeah, but...” Makoto gazed up at Hajime again, eyes creasing at the sudden fear that was tugging at his chest. “You, probably have something you need to do, right? I'm sure there's something, but...”

“I'm just...” Makoto wrapped his arms around himself, rocking as his anxiety suddenly piled up onto him, crushing him into the ground and putting him six-feet under, as he came to terms with the fact that he was truly alone. At least in the killing game he had his classmates. Here, he was truly alone.

“...So, so scared. All this death, and pain and despair...it’s so much worse than I could have ever imagined. I feel so closed in, so trapped, like I'm in the, the academy again...”

Maybe Hinata-kun was going to pull out a knife, or-or he was going to shoot him, or-!

“I just feel so scared, so afraid, so confused. It's like no matter what I do, I'll always have the looming threat of death constantly at my shoulder, just waiting till I put my guard down, and then, and then...”

Makoto shook himself, putting his hands to his chest and gazing at Hajime.

“I know this is probably too much, and you have all the right to deny, but...”

“I’ll do it”

“Huh? B-but you don't even-” Hajime put a hand in the air, stopping Makoto before he could continue.

“You’re going to ask me to stay with you, right?” he quirked his lips at him softly, and nodded.

“I’ll stay”

“R-Really?” Hajime nodded again, and Makoto could practically feel all the weight that had been piling on his shoulders lift up, like Hajime had picked up all the heavy boulders right off of him and in the process had revealed a new shining light.

“T-Thank you! Thank you thank you thank you!” and suddenly Makoto was wrapping his arms around Hajime and squeezing him.

“Euff, hey! You're squeezing way too tight”

“Thank you so much Hinata-kun! I'm so happy!” Makoto nuzzled into his shoulder, and after few moments Hajime sighed, giving in and wrapping his arms awkwardly around the smaller. 

“Yeah yeah, now get off of me” Makoto unattached himself from Hajime, smile not dimming in the slightest. 

“Thank you, thank you, just...from the bottom of my heart thank God I met Hinata-kun!”

Hajime tched, hair falling over his face. “Geez, apologize again and your vocal cords are going to snap” he chuckled.

“It’s fine, it's fine” he crossed his arms again.  


“Just, thank you” Makoto brought up a hand to his chest and laid it over his heart.

“But, are you sure? I don't want to get in the way if you have something you need to do...”

“I already said it's fine. Don't worry”

Makoto chuckled in embarrassment, giving in. 

“Right, sorry. Oh, Hinata-kun? Do you know how to get out of here? I remember being told that this place was an island, but that's about it...”

Hajime scrunched his eyes, furrowing his eyebrows. “If it's an island, then a bridge can get us out of here...”

He looked past Makoto, and over a building, pointing. “There! I remember seeing a bridge somewhere over there”

Makoto’s eyes lit up, and he began jumping, two hands raised into fists and stars practically in his eyes.

“Really?! Well then lets go!” he latched his hand into Hajime’s arm like a claw and started dragging him.

“Hey, slow down!”

“No can do Hinata-kun! We have to get to that bridge, and then we have to escape!”

“Okay, we’ll do that! You don’t have to rip my arm off in the process”

“O-Oh” Makoto sheepishly let go of Hajime’s hand, and Hajime rubbed at it. It had probably bruised.

“Sorry...” Makoto bit his lip, and Hajime shook his head, smiling again.

“It’s fine. Lets go”

Makoto grinned and raced off, turning a corner and leaving Hajime in the dust.

“H-Hey, don’t forget about me!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Makoto: death hovers at my shoulder 
> 
> Kamukura, looking over his shoulder: 🔫👁👄👁
> 
> Tsun-Tsun Hajime Tsun-Tsun Hajime
> 
> Casually shoves my ‘Makoto has dimples’ head cannon down your throat
> 
> I was so tempted to make Hajime say ‘Stop prodding my mental wounds girl!’ like you don't even understand 
> 
> I also really wanted to make Nagito the tutorial text, like it's just ‘It’s me, Nagito Komaeda on the tutorial screen, AHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!”
> 
> But alas, I am stronger then that
> 
> (no I'm not Hajime is 100% going to say “Damn Makoto, you go girl!” somewhere in this fic. I don't know when, but he will and that thought shall haunt you)
> 
> This chapter was just them being okay with each, then mad at each other, then playful with each other, the thanking with each other
> 
> It just went 15 different ways every other second
> 
> Also they hugged, it is now gay. That is th closest you will get to a sex scene from me 
> 
> Makoto teasing Hajime about his height instead of the other way around is just so funny to me 
> 
> Next chapter:
> 
> Makoto and Hajime get to the bridge, make a new friend who’s last name Makoto recognizes, and we finally get to check in on the other half of the Main Six, and see how they're dealing with all of this
> 
> (Hint, they're not dealing with it well)


	5. The Bridge

“Will you wait up?!”

Hajime let out another sigh as he watches the little blur named Naegi Makoto round another corner, disappearing yet again.

Panting, he followed. Turning the same corner, he leaned against a wall, trying to catch his breath. 

“C-Can you go a little slower? I haven’t had to run like this in at least a year...”

Makoto stopped at that (finally), and turned around, cocking his head fully to the side, much like a confused puppy.

“S-Sorry Hinata-kun. I was just so excited and I couldn’t wait!” He brought a fist to his chest, and his eyes lit up. He tended to do that whenever he was talking about something he cared strongly about, like his friends, or hope.

As Makoto continued to babble on about something or the other, Hajime slightly leaned to the side, looking past Makoto and to a car that lay in a parking position behind him.

“Hey, that car was made by Towa” he reached over, shaking Makoto and causing him to snap his mouth shut, turning his head up to blink wildly at Hajime.

“Naegi-kun, see that car over there?” Hajime pointed to the eye-sore of a car and Makoto followed his finger, setting his sights on the very same car.

“Shoot it with your move bullet. If it really was made by Towa, then you should be able to move it” 

Makoto let out a huff of affirmation, aiming his gun and narrowing his eyes onto the car, zoning in on it.

“Break!” With a whoosh, the bullet struck out of the megaphone-like gun, and Makoto let out a cheer as the car was propelled forward, crashing into a wall.

“It worked!” He pulled the gun back, resting it at his hip and latching it onto his pants. Hajime nodded.

“I honestly should have expected that. It was made by Kamukura” he didn’t want to compliment the former, but he had to admit that piece of information would be helpful in the future.

Makoto began making his way past the car, and Hajime let out a sigh. Getting off the wall, he brushed himself off and made his way after the slightly naive boy, only stopping to pick up a note that had fallen out of the Towa car.

“How to kill Demon masterpiece no. 1...” he tilted his head, skimming through the note. Whoever had written it was definitely messed up in the head, seemingly taking great joy in killing these so-called ‘Demons’, in several terrible different ways.

“Probably adults...” They were the only victims in Towa, and he and the rest of the cities occupants had all heard of the Warriors Of Hope. They were a sub-group to the Remnants of Despair and consisted entirely of children.

From what he had heard, they and the Remnants of Despair simply tolerated each other, with the only thing the two despaired groups having in common being their worship and leadership of one Enoshima Junko.

Letting the letter drop to the floor, Hajime whipped his head around when he heard Makoto scream. Ignoring the aches that were already beginning to set back into his body, he ran to where he had seen the smaller hope run off to. Stumbling to a stop, he stared at the back of Makoto’s head, who was watching a Monokuma rip into a human. A Monokuma kid was yanking at the man’s head, laughing as he smashed the long-departed man’s skull in.

With a yell, he quickly pulled the other away, hiding them both behind another car.

“T-That kid, he-he was playing with that dead man’s body...” Makoto whispered to himself.

“A-Are you okay?” The other slowly shook himself to a stop, staring at the long-haired man who was increasingly getting more terrified at the sudden silence that had once been full of screams.

Before he could say anything else, the very same Monokuma was had been clawing at the man’s body suddenly lunged on top of the car. 

Suddenly, without wasting any time, Makoto gripped the gun and aimed it at the roof of the car. Hajime watched, wide-eyed as the Monokuma fell to the ground with mechanical ‘Oh Well!’. Makoto let out a sigh. Whether it was out of relief, anger, or annoyance, Hajime really couldn't tell.

“I-I” Hajime honestly couldn't find the words to say.

“You're getting better at that” Makoto turned to him, still holding the gun in the air, before letting out a laugh that could probably make Byakuya Togami crumble.

Instantly the tension that had filled the air disappeared, and Hajime felt himself smile back. 

“Sorry. I just got a little freaked out” Makoto apologized, grinning awkwardly and looking down at the ground. Hajime shook his head, resting a hand on his shoulder.

“Hey, it's fine. Let's just focus on getting out of here, and getting to that bridge” Hajime did his best to comfort, but even he had to accept that he was utter trash at it.

Makoto however, didn't seem to care much about his consolation skills, or just didn't realize how bad they were. He just glowed, cutting right into Hajime.

Getting up, Makoto made his way past the body. The kid had long since run away, laughing all the while, not a care in the world for what he had just done.

“Why did he...” Makoto suddenly asked. Hajime didn’t hear the rest of the question, but he could piece together what words were going to be there in place of silence. 

It was a game. To the children, the Warriors, the Remnants, and everyone else who had been infected. A sport, as normal as a hobby as biking, or snowboarding, or hunting. 

Except instead of hunting deer, or elk, they hunted humans. People.

When Hajime saw the ones who weren't being mind-controlled, and simply having fallen to the tendrils of despair, saw their crazy glowing red eyes and slobbering mouth, he was reminded of wolves. Wolves looking for something. People could shoot, beat, torture, burn,  kill.

“It’s not that rare of sight around here” Hajime followed after Makoto, stopping at a corner to peer around it and Makoto leaned down to grasp at some bullets another kid had dropped.

“That’s, that’s so wrong,” Makoto said softy, unshed tears practically bleeding into his voice. Hajime didn’t respond, choosing to instead point towards something far in the distance.

“Look, a bridge” Makoto glanced up, and his dimmed glow suddenly jumped back into full force. Happiness spilled from him as he grasped Hajime’s hand, previous thoughts left forgotten in the wake of escape.

“Hinata-kun! We’re gonna get out of here!” He gleamed, and Hajime couldn’t help but smile back, Makoto’s glee practically like an incompatible infection.

Racing past him, Makoto shot at another Monokuma. With a sigh, although this time it could be classified with mirth, Hajime ran after him, coming to a stop when he saw Makoto flipping through a book.

Gunshots sounded in the distance, and Hajime let out another sigh, this time in annoyance. He had to remember to stay away from the main roads, and the gunshots practically confirmed that either a crazy despaired fuck, or even a Remnants Of Despair, was close by. They needed to keep moving.

These people. They couldn't be helped. Couldn't be saved. Their humanity was long gone, in its place being a relentless desire to kill and kill, and kill again. They were obsessed with despair, the feeling of despair. It was like a drug, slowly pulling them apart if they didn't feel more until they were killing themselves in the desperate need of getting drunk off of despair.

The main roads that weren't blocked were suicide sentences. Best case scenario, you make it out, maybe a little injured. Worst case?

You came across a Remnant.

Finding one of them was guaranteed death. They were Junko’s prized workers, the best of the best. They were monsters, slaughters, and Hajime knew that.

Makoto saw him out of the corner of his eye and handed him the book. “I’ve never read the first two books, but this one seems interesting!”

“Drugs, guns, high school girls...huh, it’s you” he let out a grin, holding the book in the air. 

“Okay, I get the gun thing, but I don’t do drugs!” Makoto pouted, hands going into fists and latching straight at his sides.

“...why didn’t you argue about the high school girl thing?” Hajime narrowed his eyes as Makoto paused, rubbing at his cheek as confusion took the place of mock anger.

“H-Huh?” Hajime suddenly grinned, mirth spilling out of his eyes.

“Unless...you actually are a high school girl!” He pointed at Naegi with the book, a grin splicing itself onto his face.

“What? You’re delusional!” Makoto held a hand up, as though it was a shield that could block Hajime’s accusations.

_ Allow Me To Cut Through Your Words! _

“I mean...” he fake-pondered his next words, face moulding into a contemplating look. “Your hoodie is really baggy, and Makoto is a gender-neutral name...”

The book was suddenly ripped out of his hands and Naegi softly bonked the top of his head with it.

“I’m not a girl!” He was pouting again, his face almost completely red as he looked away, pulling his hoodie over his head. Hajime watched in amusement as Makoto zipped the hoodie up completely, shoving his face away from view.

“Hugh!” With a gasp, he unzipped his hoodie, sweat pouring off of him. “It is really hot in there” he explained. 

Hajime couldn’t remember the last time he had smiled so much. Makoto’s light but also slightly naive energy was such a contrast to the despairful adults he usually encountered or the crazy children who ran amok on the street. 

They had to keep moving though, or they would never move again.

Watching Makoto lead the way, Hajime tried to push away the overwhelming guilt that was hurdling up into his stomach.

_ It's not my fault. I don't have a choice. I need to do this. _

Feeling reassured, Hajime ran towards the end of the street, only to see that Makoto had stopped at a Monokuma, waving a stop sign at them.

“That way” Hajime pointed to the side, and with a nod, Makoto pushed open the door, only to come to another blocked end.

“We should be able to climb this if we work together!” Makoto said optimistically. Hajime, however, had a much more pessimistic view of the world. It wasn't even the Tragedy. He was just a pessimistic guy.

“And how are we going to do that?”

Hajime honestly shouldn’t have asked.

“Why am I on the bottom?!” Hajime cried out as Makoto pushed one of his shoes into his face. Makoto let out a grumble, clawing at the top of the yellow construction box.

“Because you’re way too heavy!” He cried down. “I would be crushed if you tried to stand on me!”

As Makoto jabbed his heel into his back, Hajime officially took back his ‘light as a feather’ comment from earlier.

“Aha!” With a cry of joy, Makoto finally made his way to the top of the box, and Hajime himself let out a sigh of relief.

Latching onto the offered hand, Hajime allowed himself to be pulled up by Makoto, and they both collapsed onto the box in relief.

“I was trapped in a killing school, what’s your excuse for being unfit?” Makoto questioned, giggling.

“You don’t really have time to work out or go to the gym during the apocalypse” slowly getting to his feet, Hajime brushed himself off as Makoto did the same. With a cry, Makoto jumped off the box and to the floor. It could’ve been classified as graceful if he hadn’t fallen onto his butt in the process. Hajime jumped down as well, not landing on his butt, and helped Makoto to his feet.

Makoto made his way forward, only to jump back with a gasp when a bomb came out of nowhere, hitting him full-on in the face. Luckily, the damage wasn’t much, and as another Monokuma fell to the ground, Makoto pulled out his gun and aimed.

“Bomber Monokuma!” The Monokuma cackled, mechanical voice ripping into Hajime’s ears.

“What are you, a Pokémon?” Taunting and aiming, Makoto shot the Monokuma in the eye.

“Damn Makoto, already trash-talking the Monokuma huh?” He grinned, and Makoto giggled. 

“Oh stop it” He shot another Monokuma, and picked up some more bullets. As the third and final Monokuma fell to the floor, Makoto ran to the next yellow construction box, waiting for Hajime to crouch down.

He did, and Makoto pulled him up once again, the two of them walking through a hole in the wall.

Going down some rocks, Makoto and Hajime came face to face with a blockage of cars.

“Naegi-kun, that’s another car made by Towa. Shoot it, and we should be able to get by”

Makoto nodded in determination, aiming and shooting at the car with his move bullet. Instantly, the car was flung forward, creating an opening. Going through the vacancy they came to, a dead end?

“Oh, it's a textbook!” reaching down, Makoto picked up the book.

“What’s it about?” Hajime called out from behind him. 

“Uh, something about a highly anticipated body?” Saying it out loud felt strange to Makoto, and Hajime must have felt the same, as it took a second for him to reply.

“Uh, cool I guess. Come on, let's keep moving”

_ Well fine then, don’t even pretend to be interested in the highly anticipated body Hinata-kun _

New Skill Obtained!

Placing the book back onto the floor, Makoto ran around to where Hajime was waiting.

Continuing onward, the two came to...another roadblock.

“Damnit, everything is blocked off. It isn't going to be easy finding a way past” Hajime clicked his tongue, looking around the area for anything they had missed and concluding that all the main roads were out of order.

“Based on where we are, the bridge should be on the opposite side of this hotel!” Makoto said confidently, hand rubbing his chin in deep thought.

Hajime turned forward and made eye contact with the rundown Towa Hotel.

“Hinata-kun, what should we do? Should we go through?” Makoto looked at Hajime for support, and he sighed, rubbing his forehead.

“I, honestly don't think we have a choice. We have to get to that bridge.”

Makoto nodded, and with that, they entered the hotel.

“H-Hey, is that a Mono-Mono machine?” Makoto cried out, pointing at a claw machine sitting in the corner of the room, perfectly untouched by the trauma the rest of the hotel had faced.

“A what?”

Makoto ran towards it, and Hajime called from behind him with a quick “Don’t fall in that hole!”

Shooting at the machine with his hacking gun, some more of said gun’s bullets came flying out. Hajime scoffed.

“Well, it would be a shame to not take them” Makoto let out a cheer, scooping up the bullets and running back to Hajime. 

“You’re way too excited about bullets” Hajime stated, raising an eyebrow. Makoto chuckled in embarrassment but didn’t respond.

Running over to the half-broken stairs, Makoto eagerly gestured for Hajime to lean down.

“In the blood...? Fine, guess I have no choice” crouching down, Makoto leapt onto his back and then onto the stairs. Leaning down, he held out his hand for the other and pulled him up.

Heading up, they entered a doorway on the left, moving through the hallway. Sitting untouched by the damage, were two phone booths.

“Hinata-kun, I might have an idea!” Makoto gestured to the phone booths that lay attached to the walls. “Let’s call for help, like from the Future Foundation, or the police!”

“The police? Do you think they have any power anymore?” Hajime raised an eyebrow, crossing his arms. “The government has been destroyed Naegi-kun. The police have disbanded. The phone lines, internet, none of it works anymore” he ducked his head to hide his face under massive amounts of hair.

“No one is coming to help”

“N-Nobody?” Makoto stuttered, arms latching up to his chest. “Oh...” 

The conversation ended at that, a Monokuma turning the corner and running towards them. Shooting it to the ground, Makoto ran forward, going into the room it was standing in front of.

It was a genuinely nice room Hajime had to admit. It was barely destroyed, maybe a little ransacked but nothing too terrible. It was ideal for about one person at most, tiny and cramped and the walls occasionally felt like they were pushing in onto him.

The normal then. He usually felt like everything was closing in on him.

Makoto stared down at a desk that stood at the back of the room, with  another book in his hand. Why were there so many?!

“Unstoppable man...? That's definitely not me...”

_ (You seem pretty unstoppable to me. Practically a pillar of strength. So much stronger than me) _

Hajime bitterly ignored the unneeded commentary and walked over to Makoto.

“I have to admit, I'm getting pretty tired” Makoto chuckled, letting out a sigh and putting the book back.

“Yeah, me too”

“H-Huh?” Makoto seemed way too shocked at that statement.

“What, though I couldn't get tired?” he crossed his arms, staring down at the smaller boy. Makoto sputtered, shaking his head.

“N-No, you just didn't look tired!” 

“Well, I am” Hajime supplied. “Really tired. I haven't had to front this long in about a year”

“Did Kamukura-kun not let your front? How does that even work?” Makoto questioned, tilting his head.

“Not much. Only when he gets really bored, and he’s the one who holds the most control. He can take over whenever he wants, and he can see through me, but not vice versa”

Makoto nodded, looking thoughtful. “That must be kinda scary”

“Not really. It’s just a little off-putting, even now”

He nodded again, shifting ever-so-slightly. 

“Oh, I don't think I've ever asked Hinata-kun what his age was?”

“Huh? Oh, I'm twenty”

“Twenty?!” Makoto stepped back at that, eyes wide as he took it in.

“What? Is something wrong?” 

“Oh, no nothing like that! You just don’t look your age is all. If I saw you out on the street I would think you were, 16 or something!”

“Uh, is that a compliment or an insult?” Hajime tilted his head, crossing his arms as he analyzed the other.

“A-A compliment of course!”

“Well, how old are you?” Makoto blinked again, processing the question, before nodding in understanding.

“I’m fifte-“ he stopped suddenly, eyes going wide and mouth gaping open. If anything he looked like a fish out of water.

“Is something wrong?” Hajime questioned, suddenly concerned at the lack of response.

“It’s just, ” Makoto sighed, dangling down so that his arms were lain out in front of him, almost far enough to touch his toes. “I feel like a fifteen-year-old, and I act like a fifteen-year-old...but I’m not. I’m nineteen”

“But Enoshima took away three years worth of memory from me, three years of my life that I’ll never get back...”

Makoto sighed, rubbing at his forearms. “I should be in university now, not running around trying to save the world as an Ultimate Hope Phoenix or something”

His eyes creased as he sadly looked at Hajime. He opened his mouth for a second, looking like he was about to say something, before closing it again.

“...well you look twelve, so I guess we're both older than we seemed” Makoto giggled, shaking his head and walking back towards to door. “We have to keep moving Hinata-kun!”

They passed through two other hotel rooms. One had a book talking about the funding behind Towa city, and the other...

“Oh my God!” Makoto shrieked, holding the manga in the air. “Hinata-kun!” His eyes we shining like stars, much like a magical girl’s eyes would. “It’s the first volume of The Bomb Inside Her! God, it feels like forever since I've read this!” he hugged the book to his chest, letting out a sigh of happiness as he swayed.

“You read manga?” Hajime questioned, arms crossed again as he raised an eyebrow. Makoto sputtered, dropping the book.

“O-Only because my sister forced me too. I just kinda liked it so I read the other volumes, and that's all there is to it!” Hajime hummed, not entirely believing him.

“Huh. Never read it” and it should’ve been done at that, but alas.

“You’ve never read it?!” Makoto cried out, anguish full-on in her face as he stared at Hajime in shock. “How?! It’s like, required reading for all high school girls!”

“All you’re doing is solidifying my theory that you’re actually a girl”

Makoto grumbled, picking up the book and placing it back on the shelf.

“And besides, you technically weren’t even in high school, unless you count the...you know” he struggled for words.

“...Yeah, I know. I can’t even call myself a real Hope’s Peak Academy student, since I can't remember going to Hopes Peak.” Makoto sighed.

“I was just, so excited when I got that acceptance letter! It was like a dream come true! But now? I can’t even remember any of it...”

“Hold on, acceptance letter?” Hajime cocked his head. “Aren’t Ultimates always told by a staff member officially about enrolling in Hope’s Peak?”

“Huh? Oh, well,” Makoto rubbed the back of his neck, smiling in embarrassment. “I’m not, actually an Ultimate you know? I’m just a Lucky student!”

Hajime didn’t say anything for a moment, lifting his hand in shock and eyes going wide. A bead of sweat rolled down his face.

“Huh? Hinata-kun, did you remember something?”

“...” He stayed nothing for a moment, before shaking his head, hair falling over his face again. 

“N-No, it’s nothing. Just didn't think you were a Lucky student is all”

“Huh? But Kamukura-“

“Different people, remember? Can’t see anything when he’s in control”

“Ah, right” Kamukura had probably heard him introduce himself on the broadcast, while Hajime hadn’t.

“Hinata-kun! It's the elevator!” Going down the stairs, Makoto quickly pointed out the two elevators at the end of the stairs and ran towards them.

“Huh? What's this?” picking up a piece of paper that was taped to the elevator door, his eyes widening and his mouth gaping.

“I-Ishimaru....? Like, Kiyotaka Ishimaru?” he whispered. Hajime finally caught up to him and tilted his head. “What is it?”

Makoto shoved the piece of paper into Hinata’s arms, and he slowly uncrumpled it, keeping his eyes on Makoto. He looked like a deer in headlights, about to bolt.

“Takaaki Ishimaru, Hit List...” judging from the constant use of ‘Demons’, this was something orchestrated by the Warriors Of Hope, rather than the Remnants.

“...Hinata-kun, why is a man with one of my classmate's last names on a hit list?”

Hajime knew, and he was certain that Makoto knew as well.

“We have to find him”

“H-huh?” Hajime sputtered, putting his hands slightly up into the air. “What do you mean?”

“We have to find him! That's my friend's dad! We can't just leave him here! He’s going to be, hunted! Like an animal!”

Naegi-kun...” Hajime started cautiously, knowing how dangerous of a topic this was.

“You do know that he may be...” He didn't finish, but Makoto clutched his eyes shut, shaking his head.

“I-I know, but if there's even the smallest chance then shouldn't we take it?” Makoto challenged, narrowing his eyes.

“In the end, the priority is you, but how about this? If we find him, he can come with us and we’ll look out for him, but we won't give up on escape just for him” Hajime supplied.

Makoto looked like he wanted to argue, but seemed to realize that this was the best he was going to get.

“Are they, going to be hunting me?” Makoto questioned, starting down and wrapping his arms around his stomach.

“I, I don't know” Hajime admitted. “You might be a target though.” Hajime knew that from the wristband attached to his wrist. It was a key sign of the Warriors of Hope. They attached it to the victims of their games and blew them up when they tried to escape.

“Look,” Hajime pointed at an area on the gold parchment paper. “Hunting Grounds and they called it a Hit List of all thing...”

“This has to be the Warriors of Hope’s doing, and I think you're one of their targets”

“W-Warriors of Hope? You mean, those kids?! Why, why would they...?” Makoto stammered, confusion welling up inside of him. Hajime let the hair fall over his face.

“They see it as a game. They’re all infected by despair. They have no morals anymore. They just want to kill”

“T-That’s so wrong...” he whispered. “...Taka’s dad is here, does that mean my other friend's family is here too?”

Makoto’s eyes widened, and he stared at his hands.

“The first motive...this is what happened to all of the people from it...” Makoto whispered in slight awe. 

“T-That means my family is here as well!” Hajime winced at the other's suddenly grating voice.

“I have to find them,” Makoto said in determination. It was funny, how strong and determined such a tiny guy was

Hajime nodded. “And we will”  probably

He held out the hit list, and with a nod, Makoto took back the paper and pushed it into his pocket.

Clicking on the elevator, he and Hajime entered it together, doors closing as they went to the ground floor.

Seeing that all the other doors were blocked, Makoto slowly opened the two double doors, peering through the door. Hajime leaned over him, leaning slightly over his back.*

“Look, an arcade machine” Hajime pointed, and Makoto changed to his move bullet before making his way to the arcade machine.

After blowing up the Monokuma with an ingenious plan that Hajime came up with, he and Makoto started walking through the main hallway in the hotel. Hajime awkwardly stepped over a body and Makoto shot at another Monokuma. At the end of a hallway, a room stood out in all its gleaming not-boarded up glory.

Going through it, they came to a giant auditorium room. Seeing the exit, Makoto ran towards it, only to be stopped by Hajime, who held out a hand in front of the younger and held him back.

“Huh? What is it?” Makoto questioned, confusion contorting his face into a frown. Hajime gestured towards a Monokuma kid, who Makoto hadn’t even noticed. An open laptop was laid on top of a table beside him.

“Tee hee...”

The kid walked towards them, opening out his palm to Makoto. 

“Huh? A letter...?” Makoto slowly stepped out from behind Hajime and took the letter from the kid’s hand.

“Challenge, If you want to know the password, then ask the upside-down bird” Makoto mumbled, holding the letter up for Hajime to see.

Hajime narrowed his eyes at the note, before walking past him and towards the laptop. The kid allowed him, and he gazed at the welcoming screen.

“Huh. It looks like they want us to solve a riddle” Hajime looked behind him at Makoto. 

“W-What? Now?” Makoto sighed, dangling forward. “And who’s ‘they?’?”

“I have a feeling that...someone would stop us if we tried to leave without solving the riddle” Hajime sighed, crossing his arms. “We should just solve it, rather than dealing with the consequences later”

Makoto wanted to ask who this somebody was, but he had a feeling he wouldn’t get an answer.

“Well, then leave it to me!” Makoto cheered, both hands contorting into fists and being brought to his chest.

“After the killing game, this kid’s riddle will be...child’s play!”

Hajime started to sweat, dropping his hair over his face as he leaned down. “D-did you just make a pun? Oh, we’re doomed”

“Oh come on! Have a little confidence!”

Makoto pointed to an arcade machine that laid dormant behind a desk in front of a curtain. “There! We should try using that”

Getting onto the machine, Makoto and Hajime scrolled through the security camera. 

“W-what the hell?” Hajime questioned, starting at all the sofa’s arranged to form the word ‘hell’.

“W-wait, I remember this...” Makoto went silent, gripping at the machine. “A, a friend did something like this, and it saved me. Figures it would save me again” he chuckled to hide his sadness. “It says 7734”

Makoto stopped the security feed, and with a deep breath, he ran back towards the monokuma kid and the laptop. Inserting the code caused the door to let out a click as it unlocked.

“Yes!” Makoto clapped his hands together in glee. The Monokuma kid leaned forward in sadness. 

“Boo-hoo!” it cried out in sadness. Makoto turned to it, and raised a hand in the air, giving the Monokuma kid a condescending look**. “Yeah! I win and you lose! Hah!”

Hajime stepped back, sweat beading down his face. “Geez, you get mean when you‘re prideful” 

Makoto turned to him and pouted, hands clenching into fists. “Oh, let me have this moment!”

Hajime shook his head, a small grin slowly tweaking onto his lips. “Yeah yeah, okay” he raised his hands into a mock version of jazz hands.

“Hey! Why don’t you sound honest?” With a grumble, Makoto ran after Hajime, who was already out the door.

Pushing past the older, Makoto ran past him, calling behind him. “Hinata-kun, this way!”

Hajime let out a sigh, throwing his head back. “God, I am not dealing with this today” with a yell, he pushed off the wall and raced after Makoto.

“This is all Kamukura’s fault, he’s the one who-“ he was cut off by Makoto, who had made it into the open.

“Hinata-kun, if we get to that bridge, then we can finally get out of this town!”

“God I hope so” Hajime groaned, running after him when Makoto took off again.

* * *

Hajime leaned forward, hands running to his hips as he panted. Makoto was perfectly fine, jumping up and down as he stared at the large bridge before then.

‘Jeez, I’m in terrible shape. I mean it was to be expected but still’ he stared in awe at Makoto, who was still jumping.

“Where do you keep all that energy?” Hajime questioned, causing Makoto to let out a yip and blush in embarrassment.

“I-I’m just excited” Makoto pouted, staring at the bridge. “Come on Hinata-kun! We did it! We’re gonna get out of here!”

Hajime, ever the pessimist, narrowed his eyes, taking his hands off of his hips. “It’s just, this felt way too easy...”

Makoto cocked his head

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“It’s just, I don’t know how I know, but I have a feeling. If you really are a target, I don’t think they would let you go so easily”

Before Makoto could question him, a cry came out from behind them.

“Hey! You two guys over there!”

Makoto and Hajime both reacted vastly differently, Makoto jumping up with a cry and Hajime just groaning at the grating noise that tore at his ears, gritting his teeth in annoyance.

Running towards them, a boy with brown hair and blue eyes slid to a stop in front of them. “Y-You guys don't look like you're with those kids!” 

He walked upright into Makoto’s face, putting his hands into two fists and fiercely staring at him. “Then, you're on my side, right? Right?!”

Makoto stared at him, eyes wide as he stared into the newcomer's eyes. “I-uh, um I uh, yes...?”

Instantly, the boy grasped at the hand that wasn’t holding the gun and grasped at it, grinning at Makoto. “Oh, that’s great! I knew it I knew it! Oh, this is just fantastic!”

Hajime groaned again at the enthusiasm. It was the damn apocalypse for fucks sake! Why was everyone so happy and optimistic?

The guy seemed to ignore him, practically bouncing on his heels. “Man, it’s been so long since I’ve seen a normal person! I’m so happy!”

After a few moments, Makoto awkwardly tried to pull his hand away. “Uh, I think this handshake is over now, haha”

Suddenly, he stopped, gazing at his wrist. 

“Is something wrong?” Makoto questioned, cocking his head.

“No, it’s just, this wristband...were you also captured by those kids who called themselves the Warriors of Hope?”

Makoto blinked, before shaking his head. “Uh, no. Sorry. I was captured by some people called the Remnants of Despair”

Neither of the noticed Hajime look away, rubbing his forearms.

“O-oh. It’s just that we have the same wristband, so I just thought...” he brought his hand up, and sure enough, a Monokuma wristband laid attached on his wrist.

“Oh this is great, well not great cause we’re in a city full of crazy children but great cause we have the same wristband so we can help each other and-!”

“I um, I know this sounds weird, but do you know an  **Aoi Asahina**? ” Makoto questioned, tilting his head and staring at the boy with what could only be described as hope.

“H-huh? Yeah, my name is  Yuta Asahina”  he suddenly grasped at Makoto’s hand again. “D-do you know what happened to Onee-chan? Do you?”

“Onee-chan..? Does that mean...you're her little brother!” Makoto pointed a finger at him with the hand that wasn't occupied.

“My name is Makoto Naegi. I'm one of Hina’s friends. I was trapped here by someone called Nagito Komaeda, along with a group called the Remnants of Despair.”

“Nee-chan...is she okay?!” Yuta demanded, fear and anguish flaring onto his face. “After I was trapped, she was gone and I didn't know what happened to her so-” Makoto silently pulled the younger boy into a hug. 

“Ashina is okay, I promise” Well, she was okay if she and the others had made it to the Future Foundation. If not...

“Asahina-kun,” God that felt weird to say. “I need you to listen to me, and not freak out” he felt the boy nod against his shoulder slowly, and cautiously Makoto slid the two apart.

“Me, and your sister, and the rest of my classmates were put into a killing game. We, we were forced to kill each other. A lot of people were killed, and the mastermind, a woman named Junko Enoshima, broadcasted it on live television”

“But luckily, Asahina was one of the survivors”

Yuta let out a sigh of relief. “Well, as long as she's safe...” he trailed off.

“I have reason to believe that the reason you were trapped here is because of that. It was used as a motive for us to kill each other. Luckily, we were able to stop it”

Makoto wrapped his arms around each other and shook. “...I couldn't save everybody, but I promise that Asahina is alive”

“Ah! Okay...” With a nod, he suddenly began writing on his hand. “Makoto...Naegi...Makoto...Naegi...”

Makoto suddenly let out a grin. “Writing on your hand to remember names right? Hina did that too...”

Yuta’s eyes widened, and he let out his own grin. “Yeah! Nee-chan suggested it, and it works!”

“Oh, and um” he gestured slowly to Hajime. “Who’s this? He’s been groaning for a while now.”

“Oh! That’s Hajime. Hajime Hinata” Hajime let out a wave at the introduction.

“Well, nice to meet you! Now let's get to the other side of that bridge and find Nee-chan!”

He took off, running down the bridge. Makoto leaped up after him. Hajime let out another groan.

“Hey Asahina-kun, wait for me!” Makoto cried out.

And then the bridge collapsed, pulling Yuta down into the raging water below.

* * *

Yuta slowly blinked his eyes open and was immediately taken by the light.

“..Yuta? Are you awake?”

“Wah? Nee-chan?”

With a gasp, Yuta tried to get up as he remembered the water, the bridge, the pain and-

He looked over to his wrist, and the bracelet was gone.

“Yuta!” with a shout, Aoi was out of her seat and at his side. Her chest heaved as she stared at him in fear. “Calm down! Don't push yourself”

“What, what happened...?”

Asahina was silent. She went to open her mouth only for the door to the infirmary to open. Kyoko entered the room.

“He’s awake” she started to like it was a fact. Aoi turned to him with a soft smile. “Yuta, this is Kyoko Kirigiri”

“Yuta, you were trapped in Towa City. So I found you floating close to the edge of the island. Do you remember what happened?”

He remembered all right. He remembered everything.

“Apparently, when Aoi found you and trapped your hand, a wristband came off. We have intel from the place where we work, Future Foundation, that that wristband was supposed to kill you”

** Kill **

** Him **

**? **

Some things are missing from his mind, but his stomach churns as though there is still water in it. He remembers Towa, the children, Makoto Naegi, and H- somebody...he hadn’t written his name on his hand! He couldn't remember it!

“Yuta, could you please tell us what you remember?” Kyoto questioned. She looked like she had never comforted anybody in her life.

“...W-where am I?” Yuta blinked

“You’re in a boat, near Towa city” Kyoko confirmed, going to sit in a chair that Aoi once occupied.

“U-um, I remember Towa. I was captured a year ago, and I was finally able to escape from the apartment I was being kept in” Yuta explained to the best of his memory.

“I, I went to this bridge, and there was a guy there-“

“A guy? What guy? Who?!” Kyoko demanded, getting up from her seat and stalking over to the two Asahina’s. The older one stopped her, however, holding a hand out and blocking her.

“I know you’re worried Kyoko, I am too, but we can’t force the answers out of him. He’s my brother!” Aoi angrily claimed, hair going into a strange spiky shape.

The purple-haired girl looked like she wanted to argue, but instead, she snapped her mouth shut and nodded firmly, going to stand by Aoi.

“Continue, Yuta” Aoi helpfully encouraged, and Yuta nodded, still dazed.

“There were two guys. I can’t remember the second one's name, but the first one was someone named Makoto Naegi”

Kyoko has breath hitched, and Aoi let out a sigh of relief. “See Kyoko? He’s okay!” 

Kyoko quickly got herself together, shaking off imaginary dust. “Just because your brother has seen him doesn't mean he’s still okay”

Aoi grumbled. “No need to be a downer”

“I am not. I'm simply being realistic”

“Who was this other boy?” Kyoko demanded, starting Yuta down with no regard to the fact that he had just woken up. “If you can't remember his name then tell us what he looked like”

The man defiantly had an interesting appearance. “Well, he had a suit, but he also had long hair!”

“How long?” Kyoko had taken out her notebook, and was writing down what Yuta said.

“Like, falling to the floor long! And it was all black”

Kyoko stopped writing momentarily and turned to Aoi. “Do you think..?”

“I, I don't know!” Aoi cried out. “Yuta, what colour were his eyes?”

Eyes?

“Uhm, green I think?”

“You think?” Kyoto questioned him cruelly 

“I know” Yuta confirmed fiercely

The two girls shared a look, and Yuta wondered if he had done something wrong.

“Yuta, that person was someone named ‘Izuru Kamukura’. The Future Foundation told us about him. He is an incredibly dangerous and powerful man, and he is a member of the Remnants Of Despair. One could even say he was Junko Enoshima’s right-hand man”

She used her pen to tap at her notebook. “We were told that he had red eyes, but that information could have easily been false. We’ve never gotten a good look at him”

“Did Makoto look like he was being held, hostage?” Aoi questioned concern flooding onto her face.

Hostage? No. If anything they looked perfectly fine with each other.

Yuta shook her head, and Kirigiri hummed. “While I have no doubt that Kamukura could fake it, Makoto is a terrible actor. Perhaps he doesn't even know he's being held hostage”

“Was anyone else with them?” She asked, and Yuta shook his head again.

“Then Byakuya and Toko are somewhere else entirely...” Kyoto whispered.

“Kyoko, why did, why did they let Yuta escape?” Aoi questioned, confusion written on her face. 

“Isn’t it obvious? The remnants want us to know that they have Makoto, and therefore we can't break into Towa. Asahina-kun was nothing but a messenger.”

“Aoi, you stay with your brother. I think Yasuhiro is still downstairs praying. I'll start the ship back to the Future Foundation”

“Back?!” Aoi screamed. “But Makoto-”

“It will be a death sentence to try and go in now. We’ll go back and make up a new plan and inform the Foundation of what we’ve discovered, then we’ll come right back” she smiled softly, lips tweaking up just barely.

“We’ll find him, I promise”

With that, Kyoko walked away, and Aoi fell into step by Yuta’s bedside.

“...”

“Hey, Nee-chan? Can you read me a story?”

“H-Huh? Oh, sure thing Yuta!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Komaru and Toko once they get to the bridge only to find it destroyed: 👁👄👁
> 
> Due to the fact that this isn’t a video game, all the different Monokuma species will say their name out loud. I realized how much it was like Pokémon and I couldn’t resist.
> 
> Makoto is 100% going to be a terrible trash talker, and a sore winner because it’s just so fun to write.
> 
> I was actually going to kill Yuta, but then I remembered that the survivors needed to find out about Makoto somehow, so yey wholesome Asahina sibling bonding! :D
> 
> Damn, 7k words? Whoops
> 
> I wonder why Hajime feels so guilty? 
> 
> Next chapter: Makoto deals with the fallout of somebody else ‘dying’, and Hajime sucks at comforting, 
> 
> *: https://imgur.com/a/Dx4Kf65  
> **: https://imgur.com/a/2y6yW8O


End file.
